


giggling with the gods// Cedric Diggory

by downinhollywood



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Cute, F/M, Hogwarts, Magic, Mentioned Ancient Roman Gods, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-16 03:40:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 24
Words: 49,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29325618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/downinhollywood/pseuds/downinhollywood
Summary: ¤¸¸.•'¯'•¸¸.•.. giggling with the gods..•.¸¸•'¯'•.¸¸¤In which Sofia Chestley has to tutor Cedric DiggoryAnd their childish love makes the roman gods giggle"I think we could do it if we triedIf only to say, you're mineSofia, know that you and IShouldn't feel like a crime"-♥*♥-fem!ocPrisoner of Azkaban©downinhollwood 2020
Relationships: Cedric Diggory/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 3





	1. giggling with the gods

**Author's Note:**

> hey! i hope you all enjoy this little opening up stuff. :)

𝗪𝗘𝗟𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘 𝗧𝗢

𝗚𝗜𝗚𝗚𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗗𝗦

\---

Sofia Chestley starts her 5th year at Hogwarts in 2 days, as much as she loves the Scottish castle, she loves her world more. 'Her' world consists of listening to music, writing books, reading murder novels, practicing with her bands, and forgetting all about the world of magic. If you asked Sofia what she thought of the Magic world she would tell you it's okay. She didn't like the thought of apparating or being able to make a cup of tea with a spell. She likes the simplicity of being able to hop on a train to go downtown or boil her tea water in a kettle. Sofia's soft-spoken and tends to stick to her 4 friends, Orla Rasherton, Hei-Ran Tokko, Stanley Macerson, and Oni Dralter. But, it all changes when Professor McGonagall gives Sofia a student to tutor.

Cedric Diggory is Hufflepuff's golden boy. He's the Hufflepuff seeker, one of the smartest boys, and a sight for sore eyes. He's noticed by anyone and everyone, as much as he loves it, it's too overwhelming. He likes slipping away to the muggle world, a world where he's just a normal teenage boy. He notices a girl walking down the street across from him, and soon he sees her everywhere. He sees her at Hogwarts, in Spain, his favorite restaurant, London, anywhere he is, she is. He sees her at school, in the halls, in class, in the dorm rooms, he cannot stress this enough, everywhere, he sees her everywhere. He always sees her with, a laugh on her face, a notebook in her hands, or headphones on her head. When Professor McGonagall assigns him a tutor, and it's her, he feels as though all the gods have answered his prayers. Sofia falls for a boy, learns to love the magic world, and saves a man she barely even knows.

\---

l̷-̷-̷-̷-̷-̷-̷l̷

YARA SHAHIDI AS SOFIA CHESTLEY

"Why do I like the Roman gods? I don't know, I just do. I like looking up at the sky and thinking someone's up there. They're stories, they're a blanket of comfort, it's something I can whisper at night, and know the ending."

\------

OLIVIA COOKE AS ORLA RASHERTON

"George wants me to prank you, so look! I threw some yellow paint at you! Ha, pranked!"

\------

PARK SO-DAM AS HEI-RAN TOKKO

"You mean to tell me Hermione Granger says she's straight? She hangs out with boys all the time, and she's smart. No way in hell is she straight, I know the signs."

\------

WYATT OLEFF AS STANLEY MACERSON

"Why am I still single? I'm hot, I skate, I sing, and I'm honestly so cool. Is it because I'm gay? I know I'm not the only gay one, Hei-Ran's gay! Find me a gay man or who knows, fire is a cool element."

\------

ASHTON SANDERS AS ONI DRALTER

"Hello everyone, we're fixing the gods! The songs we're about to play are probably the best songs you'll ever listen to so get ready for it! I swear if they don't like these songs, I'm gonna fuck some shit up!"

\------

ROBERT PATTINSON AS CEDRIC DIGGORY

"I can't seem to get you out of my mind, but I don't really mind."

TIMOTHEE CHALAMET AS ALEXANDRE PITALIPS "You're falling for your tutor? Isn't that some plot from muggle tv shows?"

OLIVER PHELPS AS GEORGE WEASLEY "Sofia, the boy wrote you a song, I don't think he really minds your scars."

JAMES PHELPS AS FRED WEASLEY "My dad would love you, you know? You're obsessed with the muggle world, and so is he. The only difference is, you run away to it, my dad finds interest in it."

THE HARRY POTTER CAST AS THEIR CHARACTERS

l̷-̷-̷-̷-̷-̷-̷l̷

Spoilers for Prisoner of Azkaban talks about death, blood, murder, alcohol, cigarettes, and illegal activities. I will change a few things up, but other than that the plot should stay the same. I do not own Harry Potter, I only own my own characters, lowercase intended, meant to be read with a black background.

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3KxdZc49e7tjTYvcicC0tg?si=6bJe64TBSwqlrE30GoE6_Q

com/playlist/3KxdZc49e7tjTYvcicC0tg?si=6bJe64TBSwqlrE30GoE6_Q  
giggling with the gods by downinhollywood on Spotify

\---

hey! I'm pretty excited about this fic!! I hope it'll be better than the previous one


	2. 𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they explore in barcelona

ADRENALINE. All Sofia felt while she was riding on her skateboard was adrenaline. The wind was blowing through her curly hair, her cheeks were red due to the cool temperature of Barcelona. She overheard the screaming of Stanley and smiled. He was content, he was having the time of his life, and it showed. When they reached the bottom of the street, Hei-Ran screamed at her friends.

"TURN LEFT! TURN LEFT OR ELSE YOU'LL RUN INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC!"

"HOW DO I TURN LEFT"

"LEAN TO THE LEFT DUMBO!"

The 5 turned left before Oni fell. He let out a string of giggles, which led to everyone else laughing. Sofie walked over to where he sat, she attempted to pull him up but he brought her down with him.

"Hey!"

But her words couldn't have been heard over the loud laughs of her group. She smiled, Laetitia would be happy with their laughs, with their smiles, with their happiness. She knew that at that moment the gods would be laughing with them.

They spent their dinner eating in Sofia's flat, laughing, and talking about their next year at Hogwarts. Sofia wanted nothing more than to escape the conversation, she wasn't at Hogwarts yet. She could still be enjoying her time watching movies, or going to her favorite places on the Subway.

Because today, today Sofia was a normal teenage girl, she was eating takeout with her friends, talking about boys, girls, painting each other's nails, being a teen. But, tomorrow she was going to be a witch, she was going to be in a world of magic, in a world of things she didn't understand. Sure, she's extremely smart, but why did these things happen? She thought of herself as a girl who believed in science, but magic? She didn't understand magic and it drove her crazy.

"So, Sofia, are you still smitten over that Alexandre boy?"

"No, he's just not it for me anymore? He's popular and we didn't have anything to talk about."

Her Spanish accent always seemed to pull through, a trait she had had since birth. Learning English had been a hard thing for her, she grew up in a Spanish speaking household, and while she heard English being spoken on the street, it always sounded like gibberish. When she was 7, she had to learn it, as it was a requirement at her public school.

While she still struggled with speaking in proper ways, she worked her best on it. They watched Orla's favorite movie, Heather's. Orla whispered the words, as though it was burned into her memory, and Sofia thought that it most likely was.

Sofia refused to go to sleep, and Hei-Ran knew. She knew that going back to school meant leaving the good memories, meant leaving her summer girlfriend, meant seeing the teachers she hated, meant being away from home.

"Hey," Hei-Ran whispered to her best friend, before continuing, "Maybe you'll fall in love with the prettiest guy at school, and maybe he'll finally understand why you love the Roman gods so much because none of us seem able too."

"Maybe," She said before going into a dream filled with warm kisses and giggles filled with love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi!! I hope you guys enjoy this epigraph! I really enjoyed writing it!


	3. one- the Hogwarts express

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they go to school

SOFIA never liked waking up before 7 a.m but as her flight to London was at 7:30, she and her friends had to be up at 6:15. They got up and started throwing on the clothes they put out the night before and started hurrying towards the door exactly 15 minutes later. They stood on the curb of her street and awaited for their taxi to arrive.

"Otro año, otro evento traumático," (another year, another traumatic event) Sofia whispered to her father after Orla told the group that Sirius Black, a murderer had escaped the most guarded wizarding prison. Sofia held onto her father as if he was being taken away from her, she would see him in over 3 months, but that seemed too long. When the taxi arrived the 4 others hobbled into the car, leaving Sofia to say goodbye to her father.

"Adiós papi, te amo," (bye dad, I love you) She said before sitting in the backseat of the car. The drive to the airport was only 30 minutes, but they talked and talked. They talked about quidditch (they called it football), the new DADA professor, the cute boys, the cute girls (which earned Hei-Ran a snarl from the taxi driver), and what spells they wished to learn.

"Gracias!" (Thank you!) Stanley screamed at the taxi driver, before practically throwing the money Oni's family had given him for the fair. They hurried onto the plane, practically sprinting through each security checkpoint. Orla had to pull at Oni every time he marveled at the muggle things he wasn't accustomed to. Oni was a pureblood, but his parents didn't ramble about blood-purity or supporting 'The Dark Lord', they were nice people in Sofia's opinion.

Sofia fell asleep on Stanley's shoulder, which resulted in him playing with her curly hair. Stanley had always envied the way her dark curls seemed to manage itself, completely different from his unruly messy curls.

"Who are we going to set her up with?" Stan whispered harshly to Hei-Ran who was in the middle of pulling out her muggle cd player Orla had gotten her for Christmas.

"I don't know, I heard Diggory was failing transfiguration, and she's great at it! Maybe we can convince McGonagall to make her his tutor? Plus Oni said he saw her dating a Hufflepuff this year, maybe it's him." She whispered back, before pulling out her 'She's so unusual' cd, another gift she had gotten for Christmas.

As the 2-hour flight continued, nothing else seemed to really happen. Stanley or Stanny boy as their group liked to call him, fell asleep on top of Sofia's (Sofe's) shoulder. Hei-Ran (Toke which is based on her last name) continued to listen to her music, reading Sofia's newest chapter of the book she was writing. Orla (she had no nickname), was giggling at the thought of seeing her boyfriend again, George Weasley, otherwise, she read her textbooks which had been charmed to look like 'To Kill a Mockingbird'. Oni (They called him on, like own) was reading Sofia's first novel, something only the 5 of them could read.

Sofia loved to write, she loved to use it as a way to get out her thoughts. She wrote murder books, getting her inspiration from Sherlock Holmes, she loved the way it can be whoever you want it to be. She could make it as simple or as hard as she wanted, and she loved writing the character's thoughts. Her music and her writing were her sacred things, they were the things that kept her going throughout the school year.

When the plane landed at 9:45, the 5 who were called 'roman misfits' despite the fact they weren't roman nor were they, misfits, they just liked the name, they ran off the plane, got their 3 bags of luggage each and ran towards the subway.

"Please, no stop running, I don't want to go to school!"

"Yeah! Oni and I can ditch school together! Please Orla don't make me go!"

"Hurry up or else we're gonna miss the train!" Hei-Ran screamed, after checking her wristwatch to see it say 10:55. Oni let out a giggle, one of his classics before running into the barrier.

Cedric Diggory kept looking at the barrier every time he heard anything from that direction. He was looking for the girl he didn't really know but wanted to. For the girl that had a Spanish accent, that was always happy, that didn't love the magic world, for her. He had seen her while he was in Spain because his father was doing something for the ministry there. He saw her skating down the street, talking animatedly with her friends, or just sitting in the park writing furiously. She was so different in the two worlds. The one in the muggle world was loud and infectious, the Sofia in the magic world was quiet and soft.

Cedric prayed to Merlin or Cupid (he researched the roman gods in a muggle library so he could talk to her about it) that he would be partnered up in any of their classes, or be given the chance to talk. He wondered how she could have gone under the radar for so long, she was pretty, funny, smart, all the needed things to be a good friend. He noticed Hei-Ran, a close friend of Sofia's running into the train station. Soon later he spotted the girl with curly hair and a pretty pink skirt come running, a smile on her face.

"Not still interested in her are you?" It was Alexandre, Cedric's closest friend. He was shoving him onto the train, and teasing him about his interest in the girl.

"I mean yeah, no one really knows her except her friends, who is she? Everyone knows she's obsessed with the Roman gods and prefers the muggle world over ours which I get. She seems kinda lonely too, I think she can deal with a few new friends. Hufflepuff's are nice right!" He said with a small tint on his cheeks.

"Yeah, yeah Romeo, just get on the train and maybe you can see her, and wait no it might be too scandalous."

"Wait no, tell me!"

"You can wave at her!"

"Wait! Yes, I can do that!" He said eagerly, before heading towards an empty compartment. He was looking left to right, a perfect excuse to look for her too. Down the corridor, he saw Stanley ushering them into a compartment.

"Look, we can join them in a compartment!" Cedric whispered while smiling like a little kid in a candy shop. Alexandre teased him before shoving him down the hall, a small smile on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! the next chap is where they actually interact and I hope you guys'll like that one


	4. two- dealing with dementors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they meet dementors

"WHAT color are we dying your hair? Personally, I think badger yellow will go well with your skin tone, or ooh! Murder red! That can be the name of your new book! When you release it, it better be dedicated to me. I can see it already 'This book is dedicated to the most handsome amazing boy I know, p.s he's single gentlemen' with the little winky face! Yes, you better make me the murder victim too!"

Cedric heard a small giggle before a voice said something.

"You know Sofe's never gonna publish her books they're her most prized possessions. Besides, if she were going to dedicate a book to someone, it would be dedicated to me! It would say, 'this book is dedicated to the most amazing person on earth, and without him, I would be a girl who didn't know how to play the drums!"

"Gentlemen, gentlemen! You know I appreciate you fighting over me but please, my first book will be dedicated to the Roman gods! Like picture it, this book is dedicated to..." She was cut off by Cedric Diggory, a boy she thought was handsome and had wanted to get to know last year.

"Hi, uh, everywhere else is full and we were wondering if we could sit here?" Cedric said sheepishly, with a small grin on his face. Stanley and Sofia blushed, and the two had to look at each other to not burst into laughs. Was this supposed to happen? Oni nodded and moved closer to Orla, who got up.

"Well, I'm gonna go sit with George! Bye!" She said resulting in Sofia letting out a small giggle. The group of 6 didn't talk as a group but in a group of 4 and 2. Sofia was writing furiously, and she let out a small chuckle a few times. Hei-Ran always peeked over to see what she was writing but continued playing Exploding Snaps with Oni and Stan. Alexandre and Cedric were making eye contact and talking about quidditch, a sport they both appreciated. Suddenly the train came to a stop and they all felt cold.

"Oh shit, dementors. Hey, hey, look at me, look at me. Remember how we went skating down that giant road yesterday. How it felt good to feel the wind in your hair, and see the sights passing by in a blur? How we all giggled when Oni felt. How happy you were, hold onto that feeling alright. You can be happy, you can smile alright. I'll be right back."

She got up and held her wand in her hand cautiously, she saw the Dementor and felt her blood rush cold. 'Alright, happy thoughts, we're okay, I'm loved, I can love' She held her wand up, and shoved it threateningly at the dementor before laughing at herself. 'Girl it's a dementor, not Draco Malfoy.' She whispered "Execto Patronum", and her Patronus, an African Elephant came billowing out of her wand.

Her Patronus was powerful, powerful enough for the 6 that were on their way, but one had already made it past her and was heading to another compartment. "Expecto Patronum," She said again before it seemed to float away. She rushed into the compartment, seeing the golden trio, as her friends had called them.

"Of course it's you guys," she whispered quietly before saying "Stay safe," and almost running away into her own compartment. She checked up on her friends and started playing a song that could always cheer them up. As the song 'I'm a Believer' by the Monkees started playing, their nerves seemed to calm down.

"Do you want me to read some chapters from a book?" She got a nod from the 5 other people in the compartment. Oh? She would have to read it to people she didn't even know. "Poetry, murder, or safety one?" The safety book wasn't a story about safety, but stories, or adventures they had. 'Poetry' was the main answer she got from the group. She read her book of poetry, it had mentions of roman gods, summer flings, and the muggle world.

Cedric's cheeks warmed every time she glanced at him, he had never really looked at her before. Sure he had stolen quick glances, but never really studied her. He admired the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed, how her voice got raspy after reading a few pages. How her brown eyes looked golden in the sunlight. How her brown hair framed her smooth skin, and her rosy lips seemed so soft. She noticed his glance and she blushed, and the red tint of her cheeks stood out so nicely compared to her brown skin.

When the train stopped she shoved the book in her bag, along with her wand, and put her tote bag over her shoulder. She smiled at the 2 boys before speeding up to hop in a carriage. When she walked into the carriage, she let out a smile, before giggling.

"Guys! We were just sitting with the two cutest guys at Hogwarts!" She said to her friends. "You always do!" Stan and Oni replied at the same time. "Shove off!" Hei-Ran said while shoving the two boys to her side. "Guys I brought a succulent with me!" Sofia said while showing her new succulent to her group. She put it down and continued to loosely braid Orla's hair so that it was in two french braids.

When they arrived at the castle, they had to separate and waved sadly before Orla headed off to the Ravenclaw table, where she didn't have many friends, Hei-Ran and Stan went to go sit at the Slytherin table where they weren't liked by anyone. Oni and Sofia walked to the Hufflepuff table, Oni was rambling about a new song he had written. Sofia was laughing quietly, much different from her laugh on the train. She pulled out a coin from her pocket, smiling bashfully before writing 7:00 pm today, on it, and shoving it back in her pocket.

"Welcome!" she heard Dumbledore say, grabbing the attention of those in the great hall. "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! I have a few things to say to you all, and as one of them is very serious, I think it is best to get it out of the way before you become befuddled by our excellent feast ..." Dumbledore stopped talking and the dramatic pause made Oni burst into giggles. "Shut up!" Sofia whispered, nudging him slightly.

"As you will all be aware after their search of the Hogwarts Express, our school is presently playing host to some of the Dementors of Azkaban who were here on Ministry of magic business. They are stationed at every entrance to the grounds, and while they are with us, I must make it plain that nobody is to leave school without permission. Dementors are not to be fooled by tricks or disguises -or even invisibility cloaks." Sofia looked at Hei-Ran quizzically she had spotted her through the sea of green hats. It appeared as though Hei-Ran was thinking the same thing, how could someone own an invisibility cloak? "It must be Potter's," Oni whispered making Sofia nod in agreement. She mouthed the words to Hei-Ran who told stan, who told Orla.

Dumbledore continued, "It is not in the nature of a dementor to understand pleading or excuses. I, therefore, warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you. I look to the prefects, and our new Head Boy and Girl, to make sure that no sooner runs afoul of the Dementors." Sofia looked at Oni and sent him a small smile, he had been affected by the dementors the most. "On a happier note, I am pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year. First Professor Lupin who has kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." The Professor looked shabby in his old robes and dirty clothes. But he seemed nice, and that was enough to the Roman Misfits.

"As to our second new appointment. Well, I am sorry to tell you that Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that this that his place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who has agreed to take on the teaching of the job in addition to his gamekeeping duties." He paused, and Sofia focused on Oni as he said, "Of course! Only Hagrid would've assigned us a biting book! You already know how to tame it don't you, I bet it's something stupidly simple by petting the spine!" Sofia nodded in amusement and Oni said, "Well of course it is, god damn it."

"Well, I think that's everything of importance." He smiled at the new students sitting at their tables, before saying. "Let the feast begin!" Oni grabbed onto some salad, and some chicken, and began eating. Sofia got some salad, put some dressing on it, and ate it while writing down some lyrics.

"What are you writing?" Cedric asked, which cause the rest of his group to look at her. She mentally cursed him and his good looks. She couldn't look him in the eye but looked up to appear as though. "Uh, something fo-" She said, but Stan came over, "It's 7, let's go."

"Sorry! I'll tell you another time," She ran off to her friends who nudged her suggestively. When Cedric's focus came back to the conversation 30 seconds later, a smile was seen on his face. She said 'another time', meaning he would get another chance to get to know her.


	5. three- meeting the dog and being the tutor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she meets sirius black

AND practice always cheered Sofia up and made her feel safe. The one downside to it all was how much pain her arms were in the day after. She played the drums and was working on a new solo, which was fast and aggressive, completely different from her personality. She was quiet and soft, her laughter was warm and her voice was sweet as honey. When she pushed herself up off her bed she immediately collapsed back down.

"No, Oni" she whispered, before sitting back up and heading to the showers. Her shower was warm and helped relax her muscles. She had a hairnet over her curly hair because wash day was 3 days ago and god forbid she wash her hair with her arms like that. She hopped out of the shower, and threw on a white summery dress, before throwing a pink cardigan over it. After applying a pink eye shadow with white eyeliner, she put on some lipgloss and headed towards the kitchen. She tickled the pear and walked into the room. A small smile was on her face when she walked up to her favorite house elf. "Hi, Indrial, I was wondering if you can get me sparkling water, specifically strawberry, and a cutie?" The house-elf nodded eagerly before saying, "Of course, Indrial loves to do things for Master Chestley!" She returned a minute later, the food and drink in her small hands, before putting them in her tote bag gently. She rushed out of the kitchen, and out into the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

She pulled out a thin yellow blanket that she had used for many events like this, and placed it on the ground. She pulled out her food placing it down, and pulling out her copy of 'The Natural' by Bernard Malamud. She read a chapter and a half before a black shaggy dog came up to her. She put down her book and took a sip of her drink before paying attention to the dog.

"Hey, buddy! Do you want some food? Oh, you do! Hold up, Indrial, Indrial." The house-elf popped up, with a smile. "Hi, Indrial, I was wondering if you can bring me a whole cooked chicken, some carrots, and water! Thank you so much!" The house-elf returned with the food while Sofia was petting the dog. She thanked the house-elf and began talking to the dog.

"I'm Sofia, you're really hungry aren't you oh my! So Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban, which is a wizarding prison. He murdered muggles, but there's no serious evidence. Peter Pettigrew was murdered, but all they found was his finger, and Sirius Black had no scratches on him that showed an explosion that bad happened. He seemed like a loyal friend you know? He seemed like he would die protecting his friends. And the thing is that man was in Azkaban longer than he knew James and Lily. It must've been horrible, because didn't they have another friend? Lupin! Yes our new DADA professor, he was their friend too.

"Imagine being Sirius Black and thinking that your friend would come and reassure you but he didn't. But imagine being Lupin, he just lost 3 of his friends, and the last one was sent away to jail for doing it. They were both utterly alone in the world, and I don't think I would be able to cope with that. I still don't know how Peter escaped, maybe he used an invisibility spell, or oo he's an animagus! There were rats near the crime scene Orla told me! He could've escaped with them! But that means he could be anywhere in the world, no, he would want to stay close so he could watch Harry and report to Voldemort. I know Ron has a rat, George told us one time, maybe it's him! But then again, it's all just a crazy theory..."

Sofia knew she was rambling at that point but truly didn't care, the last time she had rambled was her previous therapy appointment 1 month ago. She gasped in surprise when she saw a grown man sitting in front of her. She let out a laugh and blinked profusely, she had to be hallucinating right? Sirius Black was not sitting there in front of her. But, yes he was there, his cheeks were hollow, no happiness on his face, but his eyes were full of hope. Hope that someone knew he was innocent, that he didn't really murder his best friends in cold blood.

"I- I-," She whispered but was cut off. "Thank you, truly thank you," He whispered, before changing back into his canine form because he noticed someone approaching. "There you are! Madam Pomfrey has a potion waiting for you, I told her that we had practice last night." It was Orla, and next to her was George. He smiled at her, before going to pet the dog. George and Fred were sorta close with Sofia, she had helped George get with Orla last year. She sometimes helped with the pranks but didn't hang out with them privately.

She took her potion and smiled gratefully before spending the rest of her day with her friends outside, talking about anything. Oni was the most popular out of the 5, but he wasn't on the Cedric level, he was the kind of guy half the school knows of but don't really know. Orla despite the fact of dating one of the more popular boys in school, she wasn't popular, at all. Stanley was the under the radar cool, he listens to cool bands, skates, smokes, and pranks, yet no one knows of him except some Slytherins, and because of this, he was openly out.

Hei-Ran was the least popular member of the friend group, she didn't speak out in class, didn't talk too much in the hallways, and was never alone, she liked it that way. She wasn't out, but it wouldn't make a difference (she had a crush on Luna Lovegood last year). Sofia was known, but not as much as Oni. People often knew her as the 'The girl obsessed with roman gods and muggles,'. She didn't mind because it was true. She laughed all the time, and made others feel good, Stanley often teased her about being a true Hufflepuff.

The first 2 weeks of school went by uneventfully, teachers piled on with the schoolwork, always insisting this year was one of their most important. Sofia tuned them out with some invisible headphones- a gift she had gotten from Stan the previous year. Everything was working out well for her, she still smiled at people in the halls, and smoked her cigarettes in secret.

Her life was in order, she still repeated her favorite Roman folk tales before bed. She still braided flowers in her friend's hair and has sleepovers with them. She still blasted music and gave herself stick and pokes. She still wrote her books and painted little abstract paintings of the school. She still blushed when Cedric Diggory a boy she had been paying more attention to lately. She had gossiped with her friends about this and fixed her hair before she had classes with him. Everything was okay in her life, and she was finally starting to appreciate the magic world. Well, that was until McGonagall, her favorite teacher held her back after class.

"Ms. Chestely, you have a good grade in my class and it shows in your clear enthusiasm. There is a student in your year and house that is in desperate need of help. I have already told this to him, and he agreed, but what I was wondering is, if you could tutor him? If you decline that is perfectly okay, I will just need to find another tutor for him."

"Who's the student?"

"Mr.Diggory." She said, and Sofia thought about it, she wouldn't really mind. But, attention could be brought to her, and she didn't like lots of attention. "I'll do it," she said, uncertainty still flowing in her voice. How couldn't she be uncertain? Cedric Diggory was one of the most popular boys in school. He had girls constantly following him, and never told them off. The uncertainty flowed to her throat, it flowed throughout her body until her fingers were shaking lightly,

"When-when, is the first session? If you haven't set it up, that's fine I can do it."

"It's today at 4:30 in the library, I imagine you will be able to find him quite easily. Good day, Ms.Chestely." Sofia practically ran out of the room in horror. When she saw Stan, Oni, and Hei-Ran waiting outside for her (Slytherin and Hufflepuff's shared that class, half of each house was in another period. Apparently, it was so students could mingle with other classes, but Sofia thought it was bs) she let out a shaky sigh. Her friends turned to her, eyes full of questions. Their eyes studied her face, and her newly dyed hair (they had chosen badger yellow). They noticed the slight sweat on her forehead, her normal smile was replaced with tight lips.

"What's wrong?"

"I've got to tutor Cedric Diggory."


	6. four- tutors and gems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they finally talk

SOFIA doesn't know how to feel as she's walking inside the school library, looking for Cedric Diggory. She's walking into the section of tables when Beer Bong by NOFX starts playing, her eyes glide against the people until she sees him. His leg is bouncing up and down, he's playing with his quill and he's focusing on a chip in the table. She takes a deep breath and walks over to the table, a smile on her face because the song is so chaotic, and she normally wouldn't listen to it, but Hei-Ran begged her too.

"Hi," She says while putting her tote bag down, and pulling out her transfiguration textbook. He smiles at her, and tries to appear calm but fails. There's a slight sweat on his forehead, and his eyes are darting around, Sofia's seen this- her father taught her how to see nervousness. She used to sit in at her father's interviews when he still went into the field at the Civil Guard. He taught her how to see if someone's nervous, guilt-ridden, telling the truth, lying, anything really. He's trying not to panic as he looks at the pretty girl, but can't, he's dying to get to know her.

"Hey uh-, I was thinking that we could start with the homework, because I don't really get it, but we can start with whatever. I don't really mind," Cedric said. His normal confidence was gone and replaced with nervousness.

"Sure, alright. We'll start once you tell me why you're so nervous," Sofia was taken aback by her words, she was never that outspoken. "I don't know- Quidditch tryouts are coming up tomorrow, and I want to be seeker when I've only ever been a chaser." He says, which is decently true, he does want the seeker position, but it's not the only thing on his mind.

"Here, this is a Black Tourmaline stone, it helps release tension and anxiety. I charged my crystals last night, so it should keep you calm, and I have one for luck but it's in my dorm."

She had pulled out a black smooth rock, with an etching on it. Cedric didn't know what it meant but didn't ask (it was a sigil). She spent an hour explaining the homework, how it was a state of mind, and how the wand movement was just as important as the pronunciation of the phrase. She told him little jokes, explained the work, and played some music that only they could hear.

"Have you ever played quidditch before?"

"No, I've never even ridden a broom before," She said while giggling.

"You haven't?"

"No, I said I was sick when Madam Hooch taught us in the first year, I fainted so I didn't have to learn how to. I prefer having my two feet on the ground. Flying seems scary, and playing quidditch, with bludgers no thank you!"

"I'll have to teach you sometime,"

"You will?"

"Yeah, and you're gonna have to show me that mug- that movie uh what was it called right! The breakfast club!"

She nodded yes, and laughed, it was almost like a song as she walked to the great hall, trying to ignore the stares she got. She waved at Stanley who was eagerly waiting at the Ravenclaw table for her, he waved her over, and she speed-walked to her friends. They all had an eager look on their face as she sat down. They had stuffed food in their mouth to resist screaming out at her.

"Please, share we're dying here! Except they're already dead because my outfit was killer today," Orla said, while pointing at her low waisted blue skirt and a white flowy tank top, a loose sweater with various prints over it. Stanley laughed at the joke before closing his eyes and pretended to slice his neck. Oni giggled, while Hei-Ran just rolled her eyes.

Sofia explained what happened, it wasn't too interesting, but just interesting enough so that Hei-Ran doesn't stare at Hermione Granger, the girl she gained interest in at the beginning of the year. "So, and then he told me he'd have to teach me how to ride a broom and that I'd have to show him the breakfast club," She told them, excitement flowing through her voice as she peeled her cutie.

"That's a date! That's a date, I bet it is omg. Blimey Sofe, I think Cedric Diggory just unofficially asked you on a date!" Stan said, a little too loud which earned the attention of Cho Chang, a girl in the year below that fancied Cedric. All she did was glare at the girl with Ebony skin, Hei-Ran shot a glare back at the girl and said "Watch yourself, Cho."

Orla gasped and said "Yes girl get her! Fight fight fight" while choking back laughter, and closing her eyes in dismay. Sofia threw her head back, and let out a giggle that gained the attention of Cedric Diggory. "So you're telling me, she gave you a rock that supposedly helps calm you down? If it works please tell me so she can hook me up with some. Merlin knows I need something to help calm me down during potions," Alexandre said to the group, which earned a 'me too' or a 'that's bogus!'

The dorm room was always clean, and neat, courtesy of the house-elves, but when Sofia saw a black dog sitting on her bed, a mess all around she let out such a loud gasp. Elizabeth, a girl that shared the dorm came running up at the noise, and too let out a gasp. She saw Sofia running down the stairs, the black dog trailing after her, but didn't register it. Sofia said a spell that cleaned up the room, earning a 'thanks!' from Elizabeth. She ran into the boy's dorm, her head down, looking for the sign that had the name of Oni Dralter.

"Hay una emergencia, debo decirte. ¡Un secreto, ven rápido!" She said in her native language, which resulted in Oni putting on shoes and throwing on a sweater. He followed her down the stairs and into a classroom, that she locked and silenced.

She explained the situation, and as Oni would normally laugh at things like this he looked at the girl in horror. He couldn't believe she had kept something that big from him, from the Roman Misfits! But, deep down he understood, he would do the same thing, he would protect those he loved with this. He knew that she couldn't fully trust Sirius Black because deep down nothing could be trusted while Harry Potter was at Hogwarts.

He stopped breathing for a few seconds and he saw so many months in one moment. Sirius looked at him in concern, as the boy's eyes became void of color. "He's having a vision," Sofia said to the man who simply nodded in acknowledgment. "Someone's gonna transform into a werewolf, and then a rat's gonna attempt to escape but a girl is gonna stop him. Oh, and Stan's gonna hook up with... Malfoy"

Sofia laughed at the last bit but questioned the first bit. Werewolf? She looked at the escaped convict and saw a new kind of horror in his eyes. She already made the rat connection, to Peter Pettigrew, but who was a werewolf. As she snuck into her common room she racked her mind, but nothing. She charged her Jet Stone that had a sigil of 'I am mentally and physically safe', and kissed her Green aventurine and Amonzite crystals before writing to Spes and Fortuna.

"Dear Fortuna and Spes,

I am not writing to you for me, but for a friend. His name is Cedric Diggory and is hoping for a position in quidditch. He is selfless, and kind, he cares for everyone. He deserves this, I know you both have a lot on your plate but I would be thankful if you did this for him.

Thank you for your kindness, Sincerely Sofia Chestley, a girl of the universe."

She copied the notes before burning one and letting it into the sky and tucked the other one under her pillow. Sofia never thought she would be sitting in the Quidditch stands, watching the tryouts, but there she was. She soon spotted the boy with pretty hair talking with his friends. She walked down the stairs and tapped on his shoulder.

"I didn't think carrying around some stones in your pocket is the best idea so I made these," She said while showing him the palm of her hand that held a single bracelet, three small circular stones on it, a sigil on each. "The new ones are for opportunity and hope, and I added a Black Tourmile, just to calm you down." She shot him a sweet smile and thanked him as he gave her back her stone for calmness.

"Hey, Sofia!" He called out to her.

"Yeah?"

"Stay for the tryouts."

"Who said I wasn't going to do that originally? Good luck Diggory!"


	7. five- bad days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she has a bad day

w// talks about mental health issues, compulsions, intrusive thoughts, death, etc.. There will be a small summary at the end of the chapter. 

GOD how Sofia hated her bad days- how she hated her heart would drop in the morning and she knew nothing would fix it. How she could read a book and the tears would come flowing out. How she would feel lost in her own world. And she hated the tears, she hated the way her makeup would runoff, and how her eyelids would get all puffy. she hated the sniffling and the thoughts that flowed in her head. she hated it. she hated the buzz in the back of her throat and the way her fingers shook. she hated how sticky the tears left her face, and how everything seemed to crash down on her.

Because Sofia knows she has good days, and she knows she'll have a good day soon enough. but the bad days are enough to make her world stop. She hates having to go to Madam Pomfrey so she can take a potion and be tied up because she's scared she might do something to herself. She hates the way she can't be around others because she'll thrash and scream- because her bad days were like that.

So when she wakes up one Tuesday morning with a horrible feeling in her stomach and the terrifying thoughts in her head, her heart- which surprisingly hasn't dropped already, drops. She throws on her favorite sweatpants, a blue pair that says 'CALI' on the side, which stands for California, Sofia's favorite state in the U.S.A, a white t-shirt and a pink sweater one that always makes her happy. She looks for her white gloves, a piece of paper, and a soft pen. She writes down 'Bad day- take notes 4 me pls, xoxo Sofe'. 

She practically ran to the Infirmary, despite the fact it was 6:34 am. She could hear her footsteps against the floor of the castle and her soft breathing. The thoughts, those goddamn thoughts were too much to deal with, she hated them, and on more occasions than one she had tried to scratch them out of her head. Her fingers were covered in white gloves and were desperately screeching at her arms, as she ran up the stairs.

Sofia starters getting bad days soon after her mother died. They started off with bad dreams, the kind of dreams that leave you with hollow cheeks and dead eyes. She read a book that told her that cool fresh air would help the tears and the screams. She charmed her four-poster bed so that there would be a cool ocean breeze would flow through and lower her body temperature. The bad dreams transitioned into daydreams and thoughts at the back of her head. The thoughts moved to the front of her head, they were bearable at first, but then the compulsions came in.

Scratch the thoughts out, c*t your skin, how would it feel to st*b yourself? Then the bad hours became days, and all the previous steps combined. It was her worst nightmare, and her friends worst too. They often watched her on her bad day sleep and held her hand while she kicked and thrashed. So when Elizabeth saw the note and passed it too Oni on her way to breakfast, his smile dropped.

He ran out of the common room, ignoring the questions coming from the people he was holding a conversation with. He ran towards the Great Hall, desperately searching for the rest of his close friends when he saw the two tall gingers and the brunette next to one of them he sighed in relief. He received a few 'Hi Oni's' as he ran down to the Gryffindor table and a few odd looks. When Hei-Ran saw the look on his face, the content look on her was replaced with one of worry.

"What's wrong, what is it? Where's Sofia?"

"Here look, I'm going to go see our head of houses and ask for an excuse." Hei-Ran read the note and got out of her seat, a bagel in hand, and she ran, and she ran. Sofia's most recent 'bad day' was a year ago, and every time they happened they got worst, and the less often they happened, the worse they got. Stanley was the one who read the note next, and he followed after Hei-Ran. George saw the concerned look on his girlfriend's face and asked the question Hei-Ran had asked moments before.

"Oracle, what is it? What's wrong?" He asked, his voice was kind, yet filled with worry. "It's Sofia- she's having one of her bad days. I'm sorry, I, her bad days keep getting worse, take notes for me, will you? Please, it's- it's important." He nodded solemnly at his girlfriend. Before looking to Fred who was talking to Lee about a prank they were going to pull on Filch. He jumped into the conversation, worry for a friend on his face.

When they reached the infirmary, Sofia was already asleep, her hands and legs bound by some fabric that would surely leave bruises afterward. No one except Sofia knew what she saw in her nightmares, but as they watched her thrash and say 'no please stop' they thought about how they were glad they didn't have to know.

Sofia knew that her bad days wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't a witch, because it added to the trauma. She knew that if she were a muggle she would still get bad days, but not like this. Because if it weren't for magic, her mother might still be alive.

Sofia was 12 when her father picked up her wand and moved his hand up and down and said 'bippity boppity boo' which ended up killing her mother. She was 12 when she watched the green jet come flying from her wand and hit her mother. She was 12 when she watched the life leave her mothers once brown eyes. She was 12 when the Ministry of Magic appeared and looked in horror at the sight. She was 12 when they explained that she was dead. She was 12 when she went to the first funeral of her life. She was 12 when she hoped that it would be the last time she went to a funeral for 50 years. She was 12 when her view of magic changed forever. Because when she was 11, she was ecstatic, she was a witch, she was magical, she would be able to do these amazing things. But then her mother was dead, all because of stupid magic. 

But not only that- magic embellished the bad days. Because magic made the words pop out of her head and follow her around. The magic made her a special being and being a special being meant having special bad days. God, how Sofia hated magic- sure she wouldn't have met her friends, but she would've made some in the muggle world.

In her bad dreams, there was no music, there was no pen and paper, there was no way for her to escape her thoughts.

When Sofia woke up, she expected to hear her friends bickering about something, but most certainly was not expecting to hear Professor Lupin and Cedric Diggory talking about something pointless. Then she heard something else, was that a bark?

"God forbid," She whispered as she sat up, instantly wincing at the crack she heard from her wrists.

"You're up!" Cedric looked like he was itching to hug her, and she almost let out a laugh. 'Please he's so cute. His hair, please let me run my fingers through it.' She thought while looking at his sharp jaw and fluffy almost curly, not really curly hair. "Yeah, I am. Do you-" She cut herself off. She thought about how rude she would've sounded if she asked because people were waiting for her to wake up, people other than the Roman Misfits, and her father there for her.

"They're at dinner, they've been here any chance they've gotten, I forced them to go eat. Here have some chocolate," Remus Lupin said. When they worked with Boggarts, he was there for her when nothing, and she means nothing showed up when she walked to the front of her class. Most assumed that she wasn't scared of anything which she most certainly was. The thing is, she was scared of too much for it to chose just one thing to be.

The thing she was most scared of in all honesty was death, but how would that present itself? She knew that she would laugh if she saw the grim reaper standing in front of her, with the eerie music creeping up to her ears because it reminded her of the time she saw a horror movie and her subconscious kept telling her funny jokes which resulted in the couple in front of her staring at her. She had stared back, and the girlfriend's purse mysteriously got soaked with soda. Maybe it would take the appearance of her friends and father dying, but she would laugh at how they would look like zombies, a thing she had seen in another movie.

So when nothing appeared, she just stood in horror.

She focused back on the man handing her a piece of chocolate, which she gratefully accepted. "Padfoot here arrived in my office whining when you didn't take him out for a walk. I didn't think dogs were allowed at Hogwarts!" Professor Lupin said, a slight edginess in her voice.

Oh shit. She thought but was luckily saved by her best friends arriving. They filled her up on the drama happening at school, and all looked a bit surprised to see who was already there. Stan had attempted to pull Cedric away to give him a 'man-to-man' talk but was rudely interrupted by Oni shoving him quite aggressively. 

Sofia watched, her eyes filled with emotion, as her friends bickered. Stan was talking about being lonely, "Why am I still single? I'm hot, I skate, I sing, and I'm honestly so cool. Is it because I'm gay? I know I'm not the only gay one, Hei-Ran's gay! Find me a gay man or who knows, fire is a cool element."

Orla had rolled her eyes and had whispered something in her ear, Sofia couldn't really hear what she was saying but she would ask later. (Spoiler-alert, Orla had told him that Fred had been eyeing him up a lot quite recently) Oni and Hei-Ran were petting the dog, who was rubbing his head lovingly into Professor Lupin's hand. Cedric was laughing at something Professor Lupin had said too, Sirius, who was still in dog form.

At that moment, Sofia realized that maybe she did have more people in her life than she originally thought. Maybe she could open herself up, maybe she was more loved than she originally thought. Maybe her bad days always didn't have to be so bad.

\--

Small Summary: Sofia has one of her bad days, she gets nightmares, and has to be in the infirmary. She has one of her bad days, her friends find out and go to the infirmary. Sofia's mom is discussed, how she died. Her father played around with Sofia's wand and a spell came out. Lupin, Cedric, and Sirius in dog form are there when she wakes up. Gets a memory of her boggart, how nothing showed up because she's scared of too much, and most of them can't be a physical form. Sofia realizes her bad days don't have to be so bad.


	8. six- nightmares, quidditch, and Halloween

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which it's halloween

"YOU signed us up for a concert! What the fuck! What the literal fuck! I'm about to recreate a page out of one of Sofe's book, and it's not gonna be a pretty page!" Stan said while walking towards a horrified Oni. "No, no, I'm not gonna die! Right! I'm just going on a quick run in my favorite pair of flats!" Oni let out a shrill giggle, before sprinting away and almost tripping on a book that was on the library floor.

"Hey babe, what's up?" George asked Orla while placing a kiss on her forehead. "We have a gig and Stan's upset, but a gig's a gig," She said, her brown eyes never leaving the book about Herbology in front of her. "Where's the gig?" Hei-Ran shrugged in response, still focusing on the bushy-haired 3rd year. "Please don't tell me that you fancy Granger. I mean I already hear enough complaining and whining about her from little Ronniekins and I can only turn things into spiders so many times," Sofia threw her hand to her mouth, trying her hardest not to let out a giggle at Hei-Ran's surprised and mortified face.

"I- shut up! Or or or I'll hex you! Yes, I'll hex you!" She said while stuttering over her words. "Are you guys gonna watch the quidditch game?" George asked while sitting down in Stan's empty seat. "Yeah, if we don't you and Fred will probably nag us to go, plus Sofia here wants to go watch her boyfriend!" Hei-Ran said. "He's not my boyfriend!" She screeched while covering her face in horror. "Oh...yeah... Diggory... Speaking of him, our gig is for us to play at the winning team's party." Oni said while panting due to his running.

"Oh shit, oh shit," Hei-Ran whispered, as she noticed Hermione and Ron walk up to them, "Sneaking out- no, O.W.L's" Hei-Ran said to the group. They had planned out conversations for moments like that, for when crushes and cute people walked towards them. Sofia's go too was giggling, because she thought her laugh was pretty. Stan's was skate tricks, Oni's was smoke tricks, Orla didn't have one because of George but hers initially was sneaking out and Hei-Ran's was drama, and small little things.

"I can't believe our teachers! They're giving us so much, I'm sorry!" Stan said, unable to stop the laugh leaving his mouth. "I can't believe, blimey mate, I don't think I've ever seen George go into the library, I didn't think he even knew we have one!" Ron said while staring intently at his older brother. "Shut up! Shut up!" Hei-Ran whispered to a teasing Oni.

"Oh, erm, uh- Hi Stanley," Hermione said in a high pitched voice. The rest of the Roman Misfits and George had to close their eyes and look away to prevent them from laughing. Not him, wrong gay bitch! Sofia thought while biting her inner cheek. "Hiya Hermione! Do you know any cute single boys? Stanley's been desperate for a boyfriend lately!" Oni said while everyone let out a sigh, and Ron could've sworn it was one of relief.

Hermione's eyes instantly widened in embarrassment and interest, no one could really tell. "I- er- no- uh, I don't, I don't think so no." Ron let out a laugh "Merlin's ball's Hermione, spit it out! Anyway, we got to go, Harry's probably looking for us. George, you should come too, your ugly twin is looking for you. No-no-, I don't want to see a spider today! I'm perfectly fine."

The rest of the Halloween week went okay. When Sofia woke up on Halloween morning, she jumped out of bed and immediately rushed into her 'Daphne' from Scooby Dooby Doo costume. She slipped on the purple long sleeve dress, the white fishnets, and green scarf. She charmed her hair to be a dark red and orange mix, she put a lilac purple headband in her hair. After applying makeup she ran down the stairs, and into the common room to see Oni as Shaggy.

On the walk to breakfast, they handed candy to those they saw. They loved Halloween, the entire Roman Misfits group did, and they believed everyone else did too. They got candy, and got to dress up, they got to be someone else for a day, and it was always fun. They saw Orla, Hei-Ran, and Stan already waiting in their costumes at the Slytherin table. The rest of the Slytherins looked away in disgust.

"You brought the fucking dog?" Stan asked her, looking at the black dog named Padfoot. (No one except Oni, and her knew the identity of the black shabby dog. "Yes, I did, he's scooby-doo! We can't have the gang without the dog! Plus Orla's going in a couple's costume with her boyfriend, it would be incomplete. The audacity you have Stan," She said while shaking her head. Orla and George were going as Veronica and J.D.

"He looks so hot in this grunge outfit please, I just want him to fuck me until I can't see anymore," Orla whispered to Sofia, to which she responded "Gross!" Stan was dressed up as Fred from the show, and Hei-Ran was dressed up as Velma. Sirius was dressed up as Scooby-doo and was looking at the group with love, but at the other Slytherin's with hatred.

As it was a Sunday they didn't have any classes, so they spent the day carving pumpkins, eating candy, and gossiping. "Did you hear the Draco might fancy Harry?" They all gasped at the news Oni told them, "No fucking way! No, I can't believe it-" Stan said with sarcasm dripping from his voice. "He has obvious Daddy issues and can never shut up about him! Of course, he fucking fancies him!"

At dinner, everyone was obliged to sit with their houses, and Sofia hated it. Orla was almost always left alone to talk with people she didn't really know. Sure she talked to the Ravenclaw's in her year but were never close. The closest relation she had was Luna Lovegood, a 12-year old that had a dazed air around her. Sofia was cut off by her thoughts due to a certain pretty boy asking her a question. "What are you guys dressed as?"

She and Cedric had been getting along well. She had learned he was a flirt, he wanted to become an Auror, he hated the spotlight and loved quidditch. She had taught him about the muggle world, music, food, movies, anything. When she snuck out on October 13th to watch the premiere of 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' she dragged him out with her so he could experience the magic of the cinema and cigarettes.

"We're dressed up as characters from an old tv show from America, Orla and George are dressed up as a couple from an American movie." She explained while playing with her rings. "Are you excited for the match tomorrow?" She asked while smiling up at him. "Yeah, uh about that, I was wondering if you could wear my lucky sweater? It's perfectly okay if you if you don't want to- I mean."

"Cedric, it's okay, I will," She said, a small blush on his cheeks. "Oh, Cedric! You look so handsome in that sweater, oops I'm so sorry!" A pretty Hufflepuff said, while 'accidentally' sitting on him. "What is she trying to do, give him a lap dance?" Alexandre said to Oni and Sofia. Oni let out a laugh before saying "If we went to a club Cedric would probably be getting the same amount of action!"

Sofia threw her head back, a loud electric laugh leaving her mouth. "Maybe even less!" She said in between giggles. Cedric had stopped paying attention to the blonde on his lap, but to the girl with brown skin. "No stop! I can't breathe, I can't breathe! Please, no!" Alexandre said while clutching his stomach, he and Oni were laughing at a joke Sofia said. Cedric felt a pang of jealousy flow through him. They were laughing at a joke she was telling, they got to hear her laugh that was better than his favorite song, and they got to hear it up close, and they got to cause that laugh.

They got to see her eyes crinkle, and her cheeks redden, they got to see her pearly white teeth, and the smiley piercing that she's had since her 3rd year. They got to see her ever gorgeous smile that made butterflies swarm in Cedric's stomach. They got to see the joy enter her brown eyes that have such warmth and feeling in it. They got to study her face in such close proximity, because sure Cedric gets to sit across from her every Wednesday at 4 pm, but he doesn't get to sit next to her at dinner and examine her face as she laughs. He doesn't get to see her face right when she wakes up, or hear her morning voice. He doesn't know how she gossips, how she acts at sleepovers, he doesn't know her enough, and it hurts him because he missed 4 years of getting to know her.

Much to Sofia's dismay, she returned to the Great Hall much earlier than she would've liked. "He did what, excuse me, but I thought you guys talked about do's and don'ts in school. Please I swear, you have to tell Dumbledore or something," Oni said to Sofia. "¿Me estás tomando el pelo? ¡Quieres que le cuente a Dumbledore! ¡Es como convencerme de que le diga a la policía que maté a alguien! Oh, sí, oficial, sí, asesiné a 13 personas por diversión, ¿ese era yo? ¿Qué tan idiota eres? ¡Maldito hijo de puta! Oni yo ... Hi Professor Lupin, oh you want me to come with you? Alright, Oni take care of Padfoot for me will you? No, I'd prefer it if he stayed here, no alright we're taking padfoot. Aye dios mio."

"Alright cut the shit." Her professor said, "Professor!" She said in a rushed tone. "I know Sirius is this dog, do you know what you're doing Sofia! You're helping a mass murderer that killed his best friends, that betrayed them!" He said while watching as Sirius went back into human form. "No, I didn't! It was Peter that ugly rat! I convinced him to become their secret keeper! You have to believe me Moony please! Please." He cried out, before diving into the story of the truth. Sofia could tell that Lupin was still hesitant, but he hugged his friend. "I gotta get to my friends," Sofia whispered before slipping out into the great hall to see people sitting in purple sleeping bags.

She sat down in the empty one on the right of Hei-Ran, "Where's Padfoot?" She asked, "Oh he's outside, he needed to use the restroom," She said hoping it would suffice, which it did. She was about to doze off when she heard a quiet thump and saw Cedric Diggory sitting next to her, a wide grin on his face.

"What are you doing here?"

"We're gonna have a sleepover like they do in those movies you always talk about," He said while sending her his classic grin.

"Alright, so first they gossip," She said, and they did. Cedric told her about his friend's girlfriends, and the Hufflepuff quidditch practices. She told him about her band, her music, her writing, she even read him some stories and showed him some of her abstract drawings. The Head Boy Percy Weasley kept telling people to 'be quiet', so she had to oblige.

At around 3:00 in the morning, Cedric awoke to quiet cries of help, and whines coming from the girl next to him. Nightmares. She was having nightmares. "Hey, hey, you're okay. Sofia, you're okay. It's Cedric, shhh, shhh, don't cry. You're safe, I promise you, you're safe." He whispered into her ear while cradling her. He wasn't holding her as if she would break, but like he was shielding her from the cruel world.

Safe. Sofia Chestely felt safe crying in Cedric Diggory's arms. She felt protected from the world, from the dark wizards, and bullying teachers. From the mean words, from the harsh winds, from the hot summer nights, from the nightmares, from everything.

Hei-Ran watched as Sofia walked up the stairs to sit next to her, she eyed the sweater that smelled of pine cones and vanilla. "Shut up," Sofia said. "I haven't said anything! But, you do look quite stunning in that large sweater that smells of Cedric Diggory." Orla ooo's at the two before focusing on her boyfriend.

Stan complained about the weather, and how it was hard to see. Sofia couldn't deny it, all any of the spectators could see were the blurs of red and yellow. Hei-Ran let out a gasp of horror which gained the attention of her friends. "Look!" She said while pointing at the blur of red falling to the ground. Sofia pointed out the dementors, and soon heard Dumbledore's loud shot that slowed his falling. They watched as Cedric held up the snitch in victory, before immediately racing down to see how Harry was. The sounds of the Gryffindors screaming in anger, and horror, filled her left ear, while the screams of the other 3 houses screamed in excitement.

"Do you think we're still going to play that gig?" Orla asked.

"I don't know, but what the hell was that?" Stan asked, his lip quivering due to the cold, and horror, but Orla was already gone. Sofia ran down the stairs, desperately looking for Cedric, only to find him trying to talk to Madam Hooch. "I think we should have a rematch! It's not fair!" He said before she heard Oliver Wood's Scottish accent that reminded her of Orla's so much. "No, it's fine!" Before stalking off.

She walked up to Cedric before placing a hand on his back, "Hey, do you wanna talk about it?" He smiled at her, "Yeah, I do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Are you kidding me? You want me to tell Dumbledore! It's like convincing me to tell the police that I killed someone! Oh yeah, officer, yeah, I murdered 13 people for fun, was that yo? ¿Qué tan idiota eres? Damn son of a bitch! Oni yo ... Hi Professor Lupine, oh you want me to come with you? Alright, Oni take care of Padfoot for me will you? No, I'd prefer it if he stayed here, no alright we're taking padfoot. Aye dios mio. " this is the translation!


	9. seven- parties and gossip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they go to a party

IT was November 5th, a Friday night, and the perfect time for a party. Sofia was setting up her drums, and conversing with Hei-Ran, who was the bassist of the group was placing his bass in the stand. "So what songs are we playing?" Sofia asked Oni who was setting up his keyboard and singing something lightly. "We're doing our Buds album, and then we're taking requests, and lastly we're finishing with Remote." Stan stopped in his tracks, "You expect me to sing all that, no, Oni you'll take the lead for Remote and we'll go accordingly for the singles."

"If they don't ask us to play Teenage Rampage I'm going to pull a Ted Bundy. That was the right reference right?" Orla said, hoping she didn't just offend anyone in the room despite the fact there were only 5 other people in the room, most of which weren't listening. "No, wrong serial killer, he touched his victims, you would pull a Son of Sam, but really, over Teenage Rampage? Why not Wild Wild Life!" Sofia said, while shaking her head and sitting on the floor, the party would be starting in 10 minutes, and they would start playing in 20. How Oni got the gig, no one knew.

Sofia watched as the people started flowing into the room. She took a shot of firewhiskey and stepped on the stage at 8:20. She spotted Hermione, Ron, and Harry standing in the room, holding red solo cups. She shook her head, before saying a charm that got rid of the alcohol. She would not be letting 13-year-olds drunk alcohol, she was not that kind of person. She let out a shaky breath as the room started filling up. She watched as the people got drinks, and laughed with their friends. She watched as they stood, anxiously waiting for the music to start up.

"Hello everyone, we're fixing the gods! The songs we're about to play are probably the best songs you'll ever listen to so get ready for it!" His voice was arrogant and cocky but was filled with excitement. Sofia could hear the happiness, the safety, the comfort, the pride. "I swear if they don't like these songs, I'm gonna fuck some shit up!" He whispered giddily to the group before focusing on Sofia. She shook her head, a large smile growing on her face, and then said "1 2 3 4!"

Cedric watched with content as she drummed fast and aggressively. He paid no attention to the drink in his hand or the warmth in his stomach. Over the past months, he had been learning about her and her world. About why she drummed (it was for her anger issues), why she got a smiley piercing (she was acting out after her mom died), why she didn't like to sing (she smoked so her voice was all crackly at times), why she was super good at school (she didn't want to be looked down upon because she's a muggle-born, so she wanted to be the best of the best). He learned all about her, and he couldn't get enough.

He couldn't wait to see her world, to hold her hand, to hug her, to kiss her forehead, to whisper sweet nothings, to comfort her. He so desperately wanted to be with her, but every time he came close to telling her he would clam up. He would say 'I fancy...' and then would say something stupid 'a drink of water' or 'a walk'. He could tell that she knew something was up, but she never questioned it.

When he told Alexandre about this his response was "You're falling for your tutor? Isn't that some plot from muggle tv shows?" Cedric had laughed at his response but hit his shoulder. Cedric remembered where he was and took a sip of his Firewhiskey before dancing to the song he had never heard before.

"When I'm alone with you. Cause I really do not understand. What the fuck is wrong with you"

Stanley's voice was loud and aggressive, it was overpowering the drums in the right way. Cedric would've thought the song was clashing a little too much for his liking, but with 5 shots of firewhiskey in his system, it was enough for him to bounce up and down. He felt the loud boom of the drums and the bass flowing through his veins. He felt the pounding and the rhythm in his heart, he felt it as he heard Oni start clapping and singing "Woah-Woah-oh," in such a basic way that everyone caught on.

Once the hour had passed, Sofia came stumbling down the stairs, a smile on her face, a slight sweat breaking out on her forehead. She paused slightly when Cedric started stumbling towards her. She felt her heart start to pound as her eyes glanced at his face. He was smiling goofily, a certain look in his eyes, that made her panic.

Yes, Sofia did know Cedric fancied her, she had seen the same look in his eyes when he attempted to tell her. Yes, Sofia did fancy Cedric, but the second she told him, the second it became real. The second she could get her heartbroken, the second she could lose him. She didn't want to lose him, she hadn't fully known him yet. But, she digresses. Cedric is stumbling over his feet, to get to her, and is smiling at her like she's his world.

"I recognize your rage it's a teenage rampage, oh yeah!" Cedric giggled at his own words. Sofia laughed too, but for a different reason. Cedric was probably the person you'd least to have 'Teenage Angst', but boy did he have a lot of it. She has seen him throw his bag to the ground or just run while screaming because he hated the amount of work the teachers gave him. She had seen him so angry that his face turns red and he starts shaking.

"What's up Cedric?" Her voice was rough, and quiet, two things that didn't go together well. "Y-your eyes! They're so pretty! Oh, your hair! I love your hair, it's so soft and sweet and pretty." She was laughing at that point before she called Alexandre over, "Alexandre! Can you take Cedric to your room!"

Sofia partied for the rest of the night, she sang along to the songs playing off the vinyl. She danced with Stan and took shots. No one had seen her act like that, they had always seen this quiet and reserved girl. Hei-Ran had to practically carry her up the stairs to her dorm. Hei-Ran was always the kind to be the responsible friend, she made sure no one spiked their drinks or got too handsy. She was the kind of person to unconditionally love you. Orla was probably with George in a closet, and she shook the thought out of her head. She did not want to see that in her drunken mind. Oni and Stan would probably be flirting with others, and drinking but never getting drunk.

The next day at breakfast the majority of 4th years and up could be seen with a pained look in their eyes and a gross look on their face. They were eating greasy foods and flinched when they heard a loud noise. But that wasn't the case for Sofia, she's been a lightweight ever since she started drinking alcohol, she could have 5 shots at most, so by the time she woke up and went to the bathroom to thr*w up then she wouldn't be hungover.

She made her classic hangover cures for her friends and headed to the entrance of the Forbidden Forrest. "I've been looking for you!" Cedric's voice was filled with sleepiness and wonder. "What's up?" She was playing with the flowers that were on the cool forest ground. She could hear some of the animals, and the cold winter breeze as it passed around her body. "What did I say to you while at the party?"

"You called me pretty and complimented me why?"

"Y-you know don't you?"

"I do Cedric, but it's okay, we don't have to talk about it."

"I want too though, I want to talk about how I want to make you smile, I want to talk about how you're laugh makes me feel. I want to talk about the things you like, I want to talk about how cute your hair is. Your hair, your interest, your books, your music, your band, what you like. I'd listen to you talk about a boy you like just to hear your voice, just to be in your presence. The idea of you being with me is so comforting, the idea of you having dinner with me in the great hall, or making flower crowns for me is so inexplicably nice. Because bloody hell Sofia I fancy you. Wait why are you laughing? Oh god do you hate me?"

Sofia had started giggling and soon they turned into full-blown laughs. "That sounded like something a fictional character would say."

"D-do you fancy me too?" He was hoping for a yes, because if she said yes, then he would be able to kiss her, to hold her hand, to hold her while she slept, so he could finally come back to his dorm content because he spent his time with her. "I do. I really do Diggory."

"This does seem like a fictional world doesn't it?" He asked.

"Maybe we might be."

"What?"

"Who knows we might be fictional. Because think about it, there's magic, we're able to do magic, and all of these creatures exist. Growing up I thought ghosts were an old tale for Halloween and that a Vampire really isn't waiting in my closet to come to get me. But Harry's life seems like just a fictional tale, it doesn't seem real you know? It seems like something someone just decided to come up with at any moment."

"Yeah, but we're here so that means we're not fictional." Cedric really wanted to understand where her thoughts were coming from, what inspired them.

"Who knows, because they might exist in their own world. It's so crazy because lots of people don't believe in alternate realities or different paradoxes but we're magical. There might be a reality where I ran away, or I'm dead or I'm a muggle! Everyone seems to think we're controlling our lives but we're not, sure we have some control, but we have houses, destined classes, no we're not controlling our own lives.

"And I think that the second we realize that, then we realize that we might be fictional. We might be the ink flowing from someone's pen onto paper, or words from a typewriter. We might just be fictional, but we might not be. Our lives might be scripted, people might be visiting us from our dreams, but I'm okay with that. Because in someone else's world I'm here, with you, in someone else's world they put us together and. I find that comforting."

Sofia talked to Cedric for the rest of that chilly November day. It soon became night time, and Cedric watched as the cool wind blew through her hair. At that moment he so desperately wished that he owned a camera because if he did he would've caught that moment. He would've caught her singing along goofily to 'Girlfriend in a Coma' by the Smiths, snowflakes covering her hair as she danced to the rhythm of the song. He damned the world for not letting him have a camera right then but it didn't matter to him, because having it at that moment was enough for him.

When she walked back into the Room of Requirements at 8 pm for band practice the first thing she said after putting Sirius in his dog form in his bed was, "You'll never guess what happened today, I-I- It was utterly crazy! Aye dios mio!" She told the story of the day's events, the 5 plus Padfoot completely forgot about band practice, they only wanted to hear about this big thing that happened between Cedric and their best friend. 

Maybe Cupid, Laetitia and Veritas would be proud of her now.


	10. eight- misses and wish kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they get nostalgic

SOFIA thinks she misses long car drives with her father the most. She misses seeing the red which is always slightly less blurry than the white pass by. She misses seeing the lights of the city, go by and think about the people, how they may be having the worst days of their lives or the best. She misses sitting in the middle backseat, with one earphone in, while her father talks to her friend that they're driving home.

She would like to think of some book passages that she'll never use because, by the time she gets home, all they are, is a distant memory. She would play her song as loud as she could, the song playing from the car radio a background noise to her thoughts. She would admire the muggles who don't know that there might be an evil wizard waiting to kill them- and hundreds of others. She would like to admire the night sky, a dazed look in her eye because she did so much that day. She misses holding a pillow that holds a paper on what to do if she gets a panic attack because she gets a little freaked every time she goes into the cherry red Volvo from 1955 named Rosie ever since her mother got in a car crash when she was 7.

She misses having only one earphone in because her mama thought having 2 in was rude, but even though she's 6 feet underground, Sofia still does it. She would listen to the conversation, tuning in every 10 minutes, so her father thinks she's listening. She misses telling her papa to turn up the music because she liked the song when in reality she was thinking too hard to pay attention. She misses tapping her fingers absentmindedly on her thigh to either one of the songs she was listening to. She would close the ear without the earphone in, and stare out the window because she saw the main character in a movie do it while she was at the cinema.

She liked looking out the window and look at the sights passing by. The car dealerships, restaurants, grocery stores, clothing stores, and parks. She would think about how she wishes she could use magic outside of school, so she could enchant a pen to write whatever she was thinking so that when she was at Hogwarts, she would have something to comfort her. Something to remind her of home.

She would notice the things she saw when she was close to home. She liked looking at the Hospital, the bridge that she would often walk across to get to a shopping center, the Toyota car dealership, the theatre, her favorite restaurant, the sign that said 'Lucienda- Proxima salida. The park she would play in when she was little, the fast-food restaurants, the CVS, the other little shops, the market that got mentioned in the newspaper every few years for their sandwiches.

She misses pulling out her house key and saying goodnight to her papa, before climbing into bed, her leather-bound notebook in hand because sometimes she did remember the new book passages. Sometimes it hurts Sofia so much to have these memories because, it hurts too much to realize that no, she wasn't back home. Because some days, her life was like the one she had back home, and she would walk back on a stony path hoping to see her home and her papa, only to see a castle and people she doesn't really know. Sometimes it's all too much to deal with because her mama's dead, and she's at school, learning about the very thing that killed her.

So when she's sitting in the back seat of a taxi cab coming back from a day of hanging out with her friends in the muggle world, she can't help but think that her life might finally be working out, because she doesn't miss it too much. Sure, she misses the normalcy of the muggle world, her father, and the summer flings, but she finally has another reason to love the magic world. Even though she had been running away from Cedric for the past 2 weeks because it was finally real, she still had another connection there.

She finally had a reason to look forward to coming back to school. Because, if her father had met Cedric he would love him, but god forbid she would be able to see him too often. But anyway, she was sitting in a taxi cab designed for 7 people laughing because Hei-Ran was trying to remember the words to 'Wild Wild Life' and was failing miserably.

"No, no, no!" Stan screeched, his hand was up in a stop position, and was closing his eyes dramatically, he had always been one for dramatics. "It goes like this.." He paused before continuing.

"I'm wearin' my

Fur pyjamas

I ride a

Hot potato

It's ticklin' my fancy

Speak up, I can't hear you. And then wo-Ah, Wild Wild Life." He said comically. It was enough to make the Taxi driver, a young man no older than 23 bursts into a laugh. Truth was, Jonathan the driver had fought back the laughs emerging from his throat due to the fact the 5 drunk 15-year-olds were absolutely hilarious. "Yo, guys we should be comedians, look we got the taxi driver to laugh! It's bloody riveting!" Orla threw her head back at the thing she had just said.

"Well, it looks like you guys are here, bloody hell, are you sure you want me to drop you off here?" Johnathon had said while peering out into the moonlit abandoned train station. His eyes danced across the desired location as the leaves blew through the harsh November wind. He could tell it would snow despite the fact the weather girl on Channel 8 said it would only rain because his fingers and toes froze that day. "If we don't get in right now, then Professor Snape will have our heads chopped off, maybe he'll force-feed us a potion that makes our hair fall off," Hei-Ran said, her eyes as wide as galleons. Jonathan blinked, trying to remember if he had heard the Asian girl correctly. Potions?

"Shh! Thank you, Jonathon! Here's your cha-ching!" Orla said while holding a 20-pound bill in her hand, and handing it towards the confused yet humored man. "This-this is the right currency, right? If not we'll have to dash." Orla whispered quietly to Sofia, she nodded, and soon enough the 5 were walking towards the train station. In the blink of an eye, the 5 were gone and onto the abandoned train that made its way towards Hogwarts whenever witches or wizards were stopped there.

Oni let out a choked gasp, as his eyes drained of their natural warm brown into a harsh gray. Stan knew in an instance what was happening, Oni was having one of his visions. Stan had learned of Oni's vision in the first year. He had seen them happen for the first time and when he did, the scream that came out of his mouth was 'bloody horrifying, what the hell was that' (11-year-old Hei-Ran said, that was the first time she had said anything to anyone besides Sofia for the entire year).

Oni's visions weren't painful, yet always slightly offsetting. He rarely shared the contents of his visions, but Stan always knew. Oni and Stan, the two had been inseparable ever since they had met on the train to Hogwarts in 1989. They were both wearing a matching Guns N' Roses t-shirt, and had instantly started talking about their most recent album "G N' R Lies", and suddenly their friendship was there. A little known secret, and what he means by little known is no one knows except him is that he's fancied Oni since then! What would happen if Oni found out, Stan didn't know. And quite frankly he didn't want to find out.

Stan hated having to hide it too, he hated having to hide his biggest secret from his best friend. And it's all utterly excruciating for him because Stan wants to kiss Oni so bad. Stan's never kissed anyone, so every time he and Oni are sitting less than a foot apart, that's what his excuse is every time his eyes fall to his lips. Because it's a simple curiosity that's all- there's no desire at all to kiss his best friend. But Stan knows that if he simply kisses him, he'll want to go back for more. He'll want to taste the cheap minty gum and nicotine, he'll want to smell the Dewey scent that Oni's been wearing since he was 8. Stan knows that once he kisses Oni, he'll never want to stop.

Sofia thinks she's figuring it out because in 3rd year she went through the same thing but with Hei-Ran. She also knows Oni's never fancied, anyone. He's never had the desire to kiss anyone, date anyone, be with anyone romantically, and Sofia knows this breaks Stan's heart every time they talk about crushes.

As their saying their goodbyes, Stan grabs onto Sofia's hand. His grip is tight, and his fingers are cold, it sends shivers up her spine, because she thinks it might be some random boy coming to do something to her, but then she notices the callus on the persons' fingers and sighs in relief. "Want to talk about it?" Is all she says to a teary-eyed Stan. The normal happiness and safety are gone, there are no golden specks in the moonlight. Only the eyes of a boy who's bottled everything up for years and years.

When Stan starts bursting into tears, she gets it. She gets it as she's listening to him talk about Oni and his tears are staining her favorite shirt, a white shirt with light pink jewels that say 'honey'. She doesn't care about the snot he's letting out, or the whines, or anything but making him feel better except she doesn't really know how because she had a similar sob like this at the end of 3rd year. By the time it's 4 in the morning, Stan is all cried out. He had been crying since 1, and he's surprised he hasn't fallen asleep sooner.

"C'mon big boy, I need to take you to your dorm," Sofia says as she's trying to carry the older boy on her back. Once he's steadily on her back she sneaks into the castle and tries her best to walk stealthily across the cold stone floor. She could hear the pitter-patter and she mentally thanked herself for not wearing her doc martens.

Once Stan was in his bed, she booked it out of the Slytherin common room. She didn't like the eerie green light or the lake animals at all. When she hears another pair of footsteps, she stops in her tracks. Her short breaths were unable to leave her mouth because a cold hand was placed over her mouth. She didn't think of any snarky comment, or what her friends would be doing, she only thought about how the hell she would get herself out of that horrifying situation.

Three 4th years were standing around her, a mischievous yet gruesome smile on their face. Sofia thought back to what he had taught her the previous year. 'If someone ever puts a hand on your mouth bite them, kick their shins, then their dick, punch up onto their chin, use your elbow in fights, and scream for your life.' So that's what she did. The greasy 4th year let out a screech when she bit hard enough to let him draw blood.

"THIS BITCH BIT ME!" Before letting out another yell of pain as she kneed him in multiple places before knocking him to the ground. She tried to run away but was caught by one of the 4th years, she tried to shimmy out of his grasp, but couldn't. Screaming was next up on the list. "AHHHHH HELP ME AHHH," her scream was so high pitched it gave the fat lady a run for her money.

"SHUT UP!" One said, but luckily for her, 2 familiar redheads along with Harry Potter came running to her rescue. She had been utterly surprised that Filch had not come running the words 'Students out of bed' tumbling out of his chapped lips. "And what's happening here?" George asked, his chest puffed out so much Sofia would've let out a giggle if the circumstances were different.

"Nothing, we're done with her. Good luck, Chestley, watch your back." His voice was sneer, and Sofia knew that it would haunt her nightmares, and worse her bad days. She let out a laugh which soon turned into tears of horror.

"Hey, hey, Sofia, look at me, what's wrong?" It was Harry. Why Harry was comforting her? She didn't know. They had had a few 1-1 conversations, she had saved him from Dementors all those months ago. "They-they ganged up on me, and I didn't know what to do so I screamed." She would've let out a small tear or a hurt laugh but the theme song to 'Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' started playing.

She didn't know whether to start laughing or crying, because her mind chose that song. She hated everything at that moment, but in the most comical manner possible.

"Thanks, guys- really, you all should probably get some sleep, classes start in 5 hours." She said hurriedly because she was not about to laugh after the horrifying event. She tapped the barrels without having to think, said hi to Helga who was looking away as to not see the student out of bed.

She tumbled into her bed, Sirius on the foot of it. Once she was covered and almost asleep she let out a laugh. "

Now this is a story all about how

My life got flipped turned upside down

And I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there

I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called " She whispered almost solemnly before thinking that music, Apollo, and Fortuna had saved her once again.


	11. nine- death and realizations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she acts bizarre

CEDRIC'S nerves were racing through his body as he sat at a table waiting for Sofia to arrive. Truth was, he had gotten good at Transfiguration, he was understanding it fully now, but he pretended not to, so he could spend time with his favorite girl at Hogwarts. But then it hits him, and he realizes why he hasn't seen her all day.

Her mother died 3 years ago that day.

Cedric knows that she's probably not going to him for comfort, for attention, to talk, but he sits patiently in her favorite spots, hoping that she goes there. He can't imagine the pain she's going through. Cedric's an only child, his parents are alive, and his support system is large and full of family. Sofia's support system reached only to her father, and her aunt. That was it. Sofia knew that she wasn't really alone in the world, she had her friends and her family, but boy does she wish she had a bigger family.

Since it's the middle of November, it's quite cold, and while Oni and Orla love the cold, Sofia despises it with every bone of her body. She hates the overdressing, her favorite items of clothing are skirts, and she can't wear them in the cold. She hates the hot drinks; she's allergic to coffee, she can't have hot chocolate because she's lactose intolerant, she doesn't mind tea, but hates hot water, and hot butterbeer. She hates the way her fingers tend to freeze, and how her toes tend to become really uncomfortable. She hates the chilly winds, and how they ruin her perfectly warm clothes. She hates the snow, and how wet it is, Sofia hates the cold, but now all she has is the cold. It's either the cold or getting pitied looks from those who didn't really know her.

So there she was, sitting on a park bench listening to Tears in Heaven while reading the Outsiders, trying not to let the tears come flowing out of her eyes. But as she read Ponyboy's pleading thoughts for Dally not to be dead, and as the words, "I knew he would be dead, because Dally Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted." Reached her eyes for the 7th time, the tears let out. Sofia had never been much of a crier, never been one to let the tears flow but, she couldn't help it now.

She couldn't help but let out the tears, as cold as ice, but as painful as ever. Losing someone sucked. She hated the hole in her heart that her mother left her with. Losing someone was the worst thing to happen to her, and Sofia believed that it's the worse thing that can happen to anyone. Because her mother was never coming back. She knew that 3 years ago, she knew that 2 years ago, she knew that 1 year ago, and she sure as hell knows that now. But all she wanted was to see her mother again, even for 5 minutes, to tell her that everything would work out. Because Sofia knew that everything would work out, she would be okay again, but sometimes saying those things to yourself sucked. She wanted to hear it from her mama again, she wanted to hear her mama's voice one more time.

Maybe she could hear her voice one more time, maybe she could be held one more time, maybe just maybe if she wished hard enough for her Mama, she could get a few more minutes with her, after all this is the magic world right? Anything could happen. Sofia thought that the cold would help her calm down, would make her body freeze, make her so cold that she would stop shaking, stop crying, stop feeling, but that didn't work. Sofia knew it wasn't rational, but she didn't care, she just wanted the pain to stop. She just wanted to feel whole again.

What sucked the most in her opinion was the fact she couldn't even visit her mother's grave. She couldn't put flowers on her grave and talk to her. She couldn't have a picnic, or sit on the top of the hill and smoke a cigarette. She couldn't apparate and it was so fucking stupid. She just wanted to be in her mama's presence, she just wanted to feel her mama around, she just wanted her mama's aura. She wanted to feel safe with her mama again.

"I'm sorry," She whispered to no one in particular. "I'm sorry Mama, I'm sorry I'm not strong, I'm sorry I smoke, I'm sorry I drink, I'm sorry for my tattoo's, and my scars, and I'm sorry for it all. I'm sorry. Please, just come back, even if it's for 1 moment, please." Her words were so quiet, so utterly painful, she was surprised she wasn't sobbing even harder. "Mamá, por favor, abrázame, por favor, haría cualquier cosa para recuperarte. Te extraño. Te extraño mucho, más que nada. Extraño las noches de cine y el drama, la comida, las fiestas del té. Extraño que seas mi amiga y mi mamá. Extraño las peleas estúpidas, extraño las risas y los estúpidos programas de televisión, extraño hablar de la escuela. Extraño tenerte en mi vida. Ojalá pudieras verme ahora. Ahí está este chico, y te gustaría. Es agradable y me agrada mucho. Ojalá pudieras darme un consejo porque todo lo que estoy haciendo ahora es huir de mis problemas. Te gustaría conocer la música que escucho, los programas y mis amigos. Te gustaría mi banda y creo que estarías orgulloso de mí. Te quiero, mamá."

Suddenly she realized, she could make her mom proud by going to her friends. She remembered something Hei-Ran had told her a year ago, "You're gonna have good days, and you'll probably be okay for months, maybe even years, but you're gonna have bad days too, and I want to be there for you on the days where all you want to do is cry. Please let me be there for you Sofe, please." She had people waiting for her, people grieving too.

Oh god, her father.

She had completely forgotten about him, he was with her for 20 years, he lost the love of his life. She can't imagine what it felt like to lose someone you loved most. All he had now was Sofia, who spent most of her days at a boarding school with an undisclosed location. Sure, they could send each other letters, but it's so different from being in each other's presence. She had never spent her mother's death day with her father, her birthday sure, but never the day she left their lives. Her father was in a way, the one that killed her, the one that performed the spell, how he did it, she had no clue. He was a muggle, with no magical ability, yet he killed her mama with magic. She couldn't even begin to think about how he dealt with the trauma. Her father never bottled things up, so she imagined it would be easier for him to cope.

The pretty girl listened and danced around to 'Pretty in Pink' by the psychedelic furs, as she made her way back to Hogwarts. She didn't really mind the stares she got, or the cold at that moment, the way the song was going with the beat and lyrics that always made her smile, was enough. Although after 3 listens, it was no longer the song she wanted to listen to. She racked her mind for a song, desperate for a song that would make her jump around in joy, and giggle utterly chaotically. She decided on 'Bad Reputation' by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. She wrote down what she would want to play next.

ꜱᴏꜰɪᴀ'ꜱ ɢᴜɪᴅᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴅʀʏɪɴɢ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴇᴀʀꜱ:  
ᴘʀᴇᴛᴛʏ ɪɴ ᴘɪɴᴋ- ᴛʜᴇ ᴘꜱʏᴄʜᴇᴅᴇʟɪᴄ ꜰᴜʀꜱ  
ʙᴀᴅ ʀᴇᴘᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ- ᴊᴏᴀɴɴ ᴊᴇᴛᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʙʟᴀᴄᴋʜᴇᴀʀᴛꜱ  
ᴅᴇᴄᴇᴍʙᴇʀ, 1963 (ᴏʜ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴀ ɴɪɢʜᴛ)- ꜰʀᴀɴᴋɪᴇ ᴠᴀʟʟɪᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴏᴜʀ ꜱᴇᴀꜱᴏɴꜱ ᴊᴇꜱꜱɪᴇ'ꜱ ɢɪʀʟ- ʀɪᴄᴋ ꜱᴘʀɪɴɢꜰɪᴇʟᴅ  
ᴋɪʟʟᴇʀ Qᴜᴇᴇɴ- Qᴜᴇᴇɴᴛʜɪꜱ ᴄʜᴀʀᴍɪɴɢ ᴍᴀɴ- ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴍɪᴛʜꜱɢɪʀʟꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅ ɪɴ ᴀ ᴄᴏᴍᴀ- ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴍɪᴛʜꜱɢɪʀʟꜱ ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ᴡᴀɴɴᴀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ꜰᴜɴ- ᴄʏɴᴅɪ ʟᴀᴜᴘᴇʀ ᴡɪʟᴅ ᴡɪʟᴅ ʟɪꜰᴇ- ᴛᴀʟᴋɪɴɢ ʜᴇᴀᴅꜱ ʙɪʀᴅʜᴏᴜꜱᴇ ɪɴ ʏᴏᴜʀ ꜱᴏᴜʟ- ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴍɪɢʜᴛ ʙᴇ ɢɪᴀɴᴛꜱ  
ʙʀᴀꜱꜱ ɪɴ ᴘᴏᴄᴋᴇᴛ- ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴇɴᴅᴇʀꜱꜰᴀꜱʜɪᴏɴ- ᴅᴀᴠɪᴅ ʙᴏᴡɪᴇ ꜰᴏx ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴜɴ- ꜱᴡᴇᴇᴛ  
ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ ᴋɪʟʟᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴀᴅɪᴏ ꜱᴛᴀʀ- ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴜɢɢʟᴇꜱ ʟᴇᴛ'ꜱ ᴅᴀɴᴄᴇ- ᴅᴀᴠɪᴅ ʙᴏᴡɪᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇᴘᴛ- ᴛᴇᴇɴᴀɢᴇ ꜰᴀɴᴄʟᴜʙ  
ʀᴏᴄᴋ ʟᴏʙꜱᴛᴇʀ- ᴛʜᴇ ʙ-52'ꜱ ᴜ ᴄᴀɴ'ᴛ ᴛᴏᴜᴄʜ ᴛʜɪꜱ- ᴍᴄ ʜᴀᴍᴍᴇʀᴀꜰʀɪᴄᴀ- ᴛᴏᴛᴏ  
ᴜᴘᴛᴏᴡɴ ɢɪʀʟ- ʙɪʟʟʏ ᴊᴏᴇʟᴍᴀᴛᴇʀɪᴀʟ ɢɪʀʟ- ᴍᴀᴅᴏɴɴᴀ

As she listened to the music, she could feel the tears drying up, and she remembered why she had loved music so much her entire life, how the music could make the tears go away. How the sweet lyrics could make her feel safe, and how everything in the world could work out when she put in her earbuds. When the school finally came back into view, her breath got caught in her throat.

"Fuck," she whispered out. She had just ditched school for the first time. Normally she got excused from classes, but today she didn't. She had left before class even started, she ditched. Last year Sofia, maybe even 1 hour ago Sofia would've been horrified, but at that moment, she didn't give a shit? Why you may ask? She couldn't give less of a shit whether she missed the most important classes because she was listening to music, and she had realized she didn't have to figure everything out by herself anymore.

She let out a giddy smile and a giddy laugh. She thought that maybe everything could work out now because she didn't have to be alone, someone else could tell her that everything would work out. "FUCK YEAH WOOO!" She screamed out, she was okay. Sure, her mother was dead, and sure she would feel this pain for the rest of her life, but she didn't have to feel like shit alone. She could always drag people done with her, or she could be brought up with the help of others. She could fill that hole in her life with someone else. Maybe she could fill it with Cedric.

Oh shit, Cedric. She had been avoiding him, she had been running away from him, from her problems, from her emotions. She never would admit it, but, running away from her problems was utterly exhausting. And while she rarely did it, since she had been dancing around her feelings, dancing around her problems, around everything except music, was too much for her. She hadn't written much at all in the past 2 weeks, and it sucked, god she hated how she acted. She hated how she must've made Cedric feel, she hated how her actions made her feel. She hated feeling and acting like a kid when she had begged for her father to treat her like an adult.

She ran into the cold castle, into the cold, into the place where she had always never liked. But, maybe she didn't have to not like it anymore. Maybe she had a reason to stay, a reason to love the magic world because maybe she loved someone. She loved the way Cedric pushed the hair out of his face, and how his smile could make her melt into a puddle. How he was brilliant at puzzles even though he would never tell you. How he never giggled, only laughed, but his giggle, his fucking giggle. Sofia didn't know how to describe it. It was better than any song she had ever listened to, it was a cool breeze on a warm summer night, it was sitting by the fire on a cool winter night, it was her birthday and it's celebrations, it was everything good wrapped into one.

She loved the way he had comforted her when she got her nightmares so many months ago. She loved the way he listened to her when she ranted about the muggle world, the way she talked so beautifully about music. She loved the way he stuck out his tongue when he read, the way he played quidditch, and looked so good after he finished. But, she loved the way he got her the most, she loved the way he didn't ask questions about her personal life. The way he accepted the answers she gave him, and the way he knew how to calm her down.

So when she walked into the Hufflepuff common room and saw him waiting for her, with a book in his hands and a small shy grin on his face, she smiled so widely it made Cedric's knees weak. "I wanna talk about my Mama with you, is that okay?" He nodded so fast she was scared he would break his neck. "Let's go outside, I know a place." He said.

Sofia knew that maybe she could see a life with him, maybe she could see a world where he filled up the empty spot her Mama took. A spot filled with warm love, comfort, and safety.


	12. ten- cupid, psyche, and kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they kiss

HE cool November wind danced around the girl with a Spanish accent who always seemed to shy away from the school spotlight and the Irish boy that girls (and boys) couldn't get enough of. Sofia shivers as she hears a faint howl, or bark coming from the direction of Hogsmeade, when she looks up to the sky she sees the moon in all its beautiful and full glory. Sofia's always loved the Moon and the Stars. She had absolutely no clue where each constellation was nor what their names were, sure she knew of Hercules, and the big dipper, but that's it. Since most of the constellations were based on Greek Mythology and since Sofia had no interest in Greek Mythology, she didn't bother learning about it.

But, anyway, back to the moon. The moon had always been a blanket of comfort for her, it had always been something she could see at night after long days. She liked to talk to the moon as though it was a person, as though it could whisper back what she could do instead of smoke packs of cigarettes. Before Hogwarts, Sofia had been so naive, thinking that everyone liked the moon, thinking that they all told it about their day's events, and basked in the over joyous moonlight. When she came to the school that caused her pain, she realized, the moon could be a bitch. She had learned about how every month people would have to transform into things they couldn't control. Sofia couldn't imagine being that hopeless, having that unimaginable pain, being so alone with this disease that could make you hurt your loved ones.

Maybe becoming a werewolf was one of Sofia's worst fears, but she didn't like talking about it. She couldn't accept it, because ever since Oni's vision that he had gotten 2 and a half weeks ago, she can't help but panic every time she goes out at night. She still remembers vividly what Oni had said once the colors went back into his eyes, but weren't replaced with joys because his visions were normally always content, they were replaced with horror and sadness. She remembers him whispering something none of them could understand until he declared it with much more panic 2 minutes later. "Either St-Stanley or Sofia are going to be bitten by a werewolf?"

She remembers her first thought being so selfish that it hurts to think about what she thought, 'I hope it's Stan' because Sofia thinks she's had enough tragedy in her life. "How-how do you know? You might be wrong, sometimes your visions are wrong!" Stan had asked all too quickly. "I saw the curly hair, god, a werewolf, how?" Oni looked at his gum wrapper with such malice Sofia was surprised it didn't burn. "Oh god, this must be related to the vision I had when I met Padfoot," he whispered so quietly it sounded like another harsh breath.

Sofia wanted to fight the urge to admit it was her who was going to be bitten. Stan had always been a stickler for the rules at school, he had so much to prove, his brother and parents were prominent people in the community, Aurors and Caretakers of Magical Creatures. He didn't want to be perceived by his detentions or being known as a troublemaker. But Stan still had fun, he still snuck out at times and was never a snotty rule follower. But then again neither was Sofia, well up until this year really, she was keeping an escaped prisoner as a pet. It was all quite lovely in her opinion.

Sofia couldn't worry about that now though, because Cedric Diggory, the Cedric Diggory was listening to her wallow about how much she missed her mother. She was taking in the cold, not minding it because Cedric was so close she could feel the body heat radiating off of him. "Do you, uh want to sit down, whenever I get panicked, it helps if I sit down, so we could talk about it without you focusing on something else. It'll also be easier to catch your breath." Cedric had said, and although Sofia was once again crying over her mother and her pretty blonde hair and blue eyes, she felt that warmth in her tummy again. Butterflies.

Sofia loved getting butterflies, she loved feeling giddy, she loved having crushes. She loved the warmth and the excitement she got from seeing the person that consumed her thoughts 24/7 walk into her room. Sofia's had plenty of crushes, none of them had ever been forced. But despite her love for love and crushes, and all these cutesy little holidays she's never fallen in love with someone (unless you count that time in her 4th year of primary school she saw a photo of Kurt Cobain and admitted she would love him for the rest of her life).

"Yeah, yeah, let's sit," Sofia murmured as she sat against the wall of the castle, taking in the cold grass and the pretty dandelions. "My Mama, she was this wonderful woman, her name was Elia, she was British, my father met her at University, she was studying law, he was taking pre-med. It was that classic love story, and you could see that they loved each other more than anything. She was so kind, my friends adored her, she would make you laugh on the hardest of days. She raised me a lot more after my dad joined the Spaniard part of Interpol. She was the person that gave me my love for murder books, my love for music, she gave me so much.

"She was the kind of person that just stuck in your mind, and she was the best mother I could've asked for. She would always tell me she loved me even after big fights because she wanted me to know getting in fights was human. She knew how to take care of me when I was sick, I talked to her about boys, about everything. She was my rock, my stupid, stupid rock. And some days I miss her more than words can describe, and I can describe things well. And the worst thing for me is, she was pregnant. 1 month pregnant. I would've been a big sister, I could've had someone to look out for. I love being an only child, I love having all the focus on me, but it gets so utterly lonely. Maybe my papa and I could've lived in this nice house by the sea, with my Mom still by my side, a little sibling in our arms. We could've been that perfect family, that family that everyone knew and loved, but no."

Neither spoke for what seemed like an eternity, no words, no tears, no long sighs, just the wind and the buzzing thoughts flowing through their heads. "There's this muggle quote I heard when I was at the cinema over the summer. I have it written down here," Cedric said while digging out a piece of paper from the pocket of his sweatpants. He would never tell her that he purposely wrote it down so he could woo her with these quotes. Alexandre had told him that girls loved it when he recited cute quotes to them, he hadn't tried it on anyone, but he was desperately waiting for a chance to do it.

"Um, love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of..."

"life by ourselves alone - we find it with another." Sofia continued, "Yeah, um, I believe it was Thomas Merton, yeah, it was Thomas Merton. He was this Monk that Hei-Ran was obsessed with in our second year. She memorized practically everything he ever said or wrote, and she sobbed when she found out he had been dead for 22 years. It was pretty comical for Orla until I passed out from dehydration because she begged me to stay with her while she cried, and Orla had to fill in." She said, unable to decide whether she would cry about it, or let out this pathetic laugh.

When Cedric noticed that her breathing had started to pick up. "Hey, hey, calm down alright, you're right here, you're safe, everything will work out. How about you tell me a story about your favorite Roman gods and their tales," he had said in an attempt to calm her down.

Sofia's lips tugged into this grin, this shy grin, over the thought of the pettiness of the Roman gods, and how their stories were more dramatic than Telenovelas. "So Cupid has one of the most interesting stories out of all the deities. Cupid in Latin means passionate desire so that's cool. His parents are Venus and Mars. Mars is the god of war, and Venus is the god of love and beauty, so the two clashed quite a bit. Cupid is supposed to be this chubby little boy, but Eros, his Greek counterpart, is really slender. Cupid's always been a background character until the story of Cupid and Psyche.

"This story is one of my favorites, but it's quite long and it's from a book named Metamorphoses also called Golden Ass which is quite funny to me. Here we go, this king and queen had these 3 beautiful daughters, but the most beautiful and desired is Psyche. So instead of praying to Venus, they prayed to her, because it was rumored that she was the second coming of Venus, which means she hooked up with a mortal, and god forbid she does. So, she's super offended, so she consults her son, and is all like 'Yo, make her fall in love with this ugly, horrible thing. But, Cupid scratched himself with his arrow, and that makes anyone fall in love with the first thing they see. He completely ignored his mother's orders and fell in love with Psyche.

"Since Psyche hadn't married like her 2 sisters, so her father went to the oracle of Apollo for advice and found out that she marries a dragon-like creature that is feared by Jupiter who is basically the king of all kings. So Psyche gets in this funeral attire so she can be both married and killed at the same time. So she gets put to sleep in this really pretty field, then when she wakes up she's in this other pretty field, with this utterly gorgeous house. But then, she hears this voice that tells her to make herself comfortable, and she eats from this feast that serves itself, and this invisible lyre is there. So she gets led into this bedroom and she has sex with this invisible being that she is forbidden to see. Soon enough, she gets pregnant.

"So when her parents get all nervous, Cupid allows them to see her, not knowing that she is his bride. Her sisters become all jealous once they see where she's living, and convince her to get a peek at her future husband despite the fact the oracle told her sisters that if she did look at her husband she would be killed and so would her child, they tell her that too. So she plans to kill this creature but sees the most beautiful thing she's ever laid her eyes on. In a panic, she cuts herself with one of Cupid's arrows and goes after him, but he runs away. He says 'we're ditching because commitment is utterly horrifying!'

"And then, this wilderness god named Pan helps her look for her lost love because she was left at the side of a river. Psyche goes to her sisters, and they're all extremely jealous when they learn who her husband is, and they go to Zephyr so they can be the new wife but fall to their death. On her adventure Psyche finds the house of Ceres, who is the god of agriculture and all the fun stuff. She begs for help, but Ceres can't help her so she turns Psyche over to Venus. Venus is so upset that she makes her two maids, Worry and Sadness torture her and embarrass her. Venus says she has to go to this party and demands that Psyche sort out these grains. These kind ants come and help her, Venus comes back drunk as hell and throws a piece of bread at her. Then we find out Cupid is healing himself from this wound.

"At dawn Psyche is given this task to cross a river and get golden wool from a violent sheep. She tries to drown herself, but these magical reeds save her, and she gets the wool from briers, briers are shrubs by the way. For her third task, she has to collect some water from this river and climb up this steep hill. But, this dragon slash snake comes up and sabotages her. Jupiter sees this damsel in distress and helps her. Her last task is to collect some beauty from the ruler of the underworld Prosperina. She plans to throw herself off this tower, but the tower gives her advice on how to enter the underworld. She needed some cakes and two gold coins for her trip.

"She's told to be completely silent, and the cakes are for distracting Cerberus which is the three-headed guard dog of Orcus, kinda like fluffy and the sorcerer's stone in our 3rd year. The coins are for the ferry so she can make the return trip. Proserpina gives her the beauty, but when she makes it back to the light, she opens the box only to find out it's filled with 'infernal and Stygian sleep' which sends her into this deep deep sleep. Once Cupid's wound heals, he leaves his mom's house, only to find Psyche sleeping like that. He lifts the sleep off of her and takes her to present the box to Venus. He takes her to Zeus for help, he agrees as long as Cupid agrees to help him with maidens.

"Psyche drinks this potion of immortality. Cupid and Psyche have this big grand wedding, it's beautiful and all. Then Psyche gives birth to her daughter Voluptas which means pleaser.

"Cupid actually has 2 types of arrows, which no one ever really knows. He has a golden tipped arrow, which when struck with one gets filled with an uncontrollable desire for someone. The other one is lead tipped, and when you get struck by it you want to run away from your problems. He was challenged by Apollo, so he tried to shoot him with a golden arrow, but struck the object of his desire with a lead arrow. So Daphne the nymph is getting all this unwanted attention from Apollo so she begs her father Peneus to get her away from him. So she gets turned into a laurel, one of the trees sacred to Apollo. He had such an ego, he messed up so many love affairs but was too cocky to admit it."

All the while she told this story, Cedric noticed her breathing slow down, and watched as her smile grew. As she told this story the trees listened in, hoping for their nighttime stories. The beautiful creatures wandered into sight, hoping for any amount of comfort before going to sleep with one eye open. She played with his hair and ended up making him this flower crown, that Cedric never wanted to lose. He couldn't help the question that was slipping off the tip of his tongue.

"Why do you like the Roman gods so much? What makes them so important to you, I want to know?"

She hesitated for a moment, why did she like the Roman gods so much? She opened her mouth a few times, before closing it, she felt like a fish out of water. "Um, I-," she took a deep breath before continuing, "Why do I like the Roman gods? I don't know, I just do. I like looking up at the sky and thinking someone's up there. They're stories, they're a blanket of comfort, it's something I can whisper at night, and know the ending." She sent him this goofy, yet embarrassed grin.

"Why do you look so embarrassed about it?" He asked, his eyes admiring Sofia's eyes, and how they reflected the sky so beautifully. He wondered if she would ever look at him like that, truth was, she already did, and it was a wonder how he never noticed.

"My mom used to tease me about it, she said it made me nerdy, but I don't mind now. She used to love it when I told her these stories. She used to tell me I was brilliant, and amazing for having memorized these long and intertwined stories." She whispered her words traveling through the wind in gusts.

"It is amazing how you memorized these stories, how you're so passionate about something. I think it's quite admirable," His words came out strong, but slowly turned into another noise of the night once he realized how close he was to Sofia. He watched as her pink lips opened and closed, their breaths mixing. He wouldn't mind having his first kiss in this environment, with Sofia. In fact, he was desperate for her lips to be on his.

The two made eye contact, Sofia gave him a small timid head nod, a confirmation. That was all Cedric needed. As he leaned forward, he couldn't help the smile on his lips. Holy shit. He was going to kiss Sofia Chestley in stupid black sweatpants and a long sleeve yellow shirt. As their lips touched, Cedric felt the electric touch that he had seen in cheesy muggle books. It was short and sweet, almost as though it was a 'hello' kiss.

When they parted Sofia let out this small giggle. She had just kissed Cedric Diggory, the Cedric Diggory. As her laughs grew louder, Cedric's began. Soon enough they were in full-blown tears, Cedric's flower crown almost falling off his head, Sofia's hair filled with blades of grass.

Cupid, Psyche, Pax, Trivia, Necessita, Juventas, Libertas, were all looking down on them, unable to stop their stupid grins, because, they were watching their plans work out, they were watching two kids destined for each other, fall in love.

\---

GODS AND WHAT THEY REPRESENT:

Psyche- Goddess of the soul

Venus- Goddess of Love and beauty

Apollo- God of the Sun, poetry, music, and oracles

Oracles- Woman that gave the gods 'divine advice'

Cupid- God of Love

Jupiter- the King of the Gods and the God of sky and rain

Zephyr/Zephyrus- God of the west wind and spring

Pan- God of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature of mountain wilds, rustic music and impromptus

Proserpina- Goddess of Grain and Queen of the Dead

Zeus- God of sky and thunder

Peneus- a Thessalian river god

Daphne the nymph- Nymph associated with fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks, and other bodies of freshwater

Voluptas- Goddess of pleasure

Pax- Goddess of Peace

Trivia- Goddess of Magic

Necessita- Goddess of destiny

Juventas- Goddess of youth

Libertas- Goddess of freedom


	13. eleven- nightmares, dates, and gossip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which it's wash day

SOFIA woke up that Saturday tired, and groggy, yet content nonetheless. Her memories were flooded by the warmth of last night, kissing Cedric, not running away, gossiping with Sirius, and finally writing something else onto her page in her notebook named, 'For all the bad days'. Because god she finally got something good from November 27th. From the day her life changed, the day it all began crumbling down.

Sirius in his dog form was sleeping peacefully, looking well-fed and safe, safe. Sirius was safe, after the trauma of losing his best friends- the people he would die for, all because of a stupid fucking rat. Maybe it was his fault, for making Peter a second thought, always in the shadows of James and Remus. For never letting him have his own thoughts, but that doesn't warrant betraying your friends, he doesn't think he ever did, and he doesn't think it ever will. But he's sleeping now, he doesn't have to worry about anything except the boy in his dreams that has scars all across his body and a large knitted sweater.

Sofia's excited for the day, she has band practice, which obviously means gossiping with her friends, eating snacks, and writing some songs. She loved her band, practicing, giggling, singing, tweaking them. And while Sofia enjoys Saturday's, she enjoys Thursdays even more. She doesn't know what makes Thursdays so enjoyable for her, she thinks it's because her father is normally home on Thursdays so they watch old movies. Thursdays are the day's quidditch matches are on, and while Hufflepuff hasn't played in a while, they normally have gigs afterward. Thursdays have always just stuck with her.

So, she does her normal thing, picking out her outfit, heading towards the shower, then she remembered, shit, it's wash day. And while all she wants to do today is practice the drums, but no, god no, her hair needed to be washed. So she sauntered down the stairs, a small frown on her face. She smiled at Helga and took in, really took it in the Hufflepuff common room. The yellow soft light, the couches that had a nice lavender smell, and several creases from the years and years of use, the flowers that never died, the fireplace that helped with the cold nights, the books that Sofia's read to her friends, the entire common room has this feel of warm summer nights, that make her feel safe. Out of the entirety of Hogwarts, besides the Room of Requirements, and kitchens, she thinks the Hufflepuff common room is her favorite.

She walked up the stairs, her feet taking in the cold wood. Once she reached the desired door, the one with the words 'Oni Dralter, Cedric Diggory, Alexandre Pitalips, Philips Xander'. She knocked on the door, listening for the 'come in!' from someone. "Come in, Sofe!" Sofia was the only one who knocked, she remembered Hei-Ran running out of the common room her hands over her eyes because she had made the poor decision to open the door, Oni had just showered. She remembers Hei-Ran begging Professor Flitwick to obliviate her, and while he did, she was still traumatized.

"Hey, Oni, um, I kinda can't go to practice today." She said a cheesy smile on her face. "WHAT!" He screamed, he couldn't believe it, she had never missed band practice. "It's wash day, and uh." She replied, picking at her hair, "Oh hey Sofia what are you doing here?" Cedric asked, his eyes scanning her, taking in her black sweatpants and red sweatshirt that said 'Benjamin Franklin International School', her cheeks were rosy, her face deprived of any makeup, none of her piercings were in and her hair was covered by her hood.

Sofia's eyes widened in surprise, shit, Cedric. She had read the name on the board but never registered it. "H-hi Cedric! Uh, how are you?" Cedric sent her a charming smile, and she wanted to melt. She's used to the smile, but god when that boy smiled it was beautiful. "I'm doing pretty great, I actually wanted to talk to you about something later..." Sofia's smile grew.

God how Sofia was pretty, how her smile seemed to light up his day, how the simple giggle made him laugh because it was so infectious. She had these pretty dresses, white pretty makeup, and eyes that made the entire world glow. Sofia knew she was pretty, she knew it, she knew her eyes were warm, her hair was a cloud that framed her pretty bone structure, but seeing Cedric look at her like she was the entire world, she felt perfect.

"Here you go," Oni said, a bottle of 'Blue Magic Hair Conditioner' in his hands. She smiled at him, giving him a grateful nod, before turning to Cedric, "Uh, I'll see you at dinner, bye Cedric!" She threw a smile before rushing out the door. What did he want to talk about, god, could this be a bad thing she thought.

Maybe he would ask her out on a date, a date! Maybe they would go to the Three Broomsticks, walk down the little town and hold hands, maybe they could kiss at the end of it. Maybe she could get that fluttery feeling in her stomach that she always does, maybe she could see the snow glisten in his hair, maybe she could see that bit of foam on the top of his lip from the butterbeer or his fingers in between hers. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

Things to know about Sofia: she loves to write, she loves the Roman gods, she gets such bad second-hand embarrassment she doesn't finish books because the character did something embarrassing, and she hates wash day. She hates having to wear tiny shorts and a bathing suit top, and massage her head, having to detangle it, cleansing it in sections, condition it in sections, rinsing it in sections, towel dry, moisturizing, and styling it.

It takes hours and leaves her arms tired. Nonetheless, she does it, she sits there and listens to music. She dances along, whispering the lyrics to Killer Queen, twirling her hair into curls, and massages her head. By the time she's done, it's almost dinner time and she's this close to crying. She loves her hair, she really does, but the maintenance sucks. Her friends, never really get it, Hei-Ran and Orla have straight hair, she has 4a. Stan has the kind of hair that takes Aussie Curl cream, and that's it. Oni gets it, but god his hair is short.

She walks down to dinner, a tired smile on her face, she watched as Oni talks animatedly to the boy across the table, while Stan watches from the Slytherin table almost jealously. She sends him a sad smile, before sitting down. "Uh, hi Sofia, how did washing your hair go?" Alexandre asked.

"How do you know about my hair washing activities," she asked, subconsciously playing with the pretty ringlets. "Cedric is my best friend, so obviously I know about everything you do," He said, which earned him a shove from his best mate. She ate her food, it was some cacio e pepe, her favorite food. She ate some dessert and listened to Oni joke around, occasionally jumping in.

Hei-Ran came over and plopped her chin down onto her friend's head. "We had Madam Pomfrey whip you up a potion, uh are you gonna practice with us?" She asked, noticing the way the brunette boy nodded his head no and did an 'x' shape with his arms. "I'm too tired tonight, I'm going to read, and probably write a little. Thanks though, but you know how protective I am over my perfect little curls I spent like 7 hours on. God! I spent 7 hours on my hair, Merlin, oh my god, 7 hours, 7 hours, on hair, hair!"

Hei-Ran let out a short giggle, quiet, uncomfortable with the eyes on her. She had grown a little more since the beginning of the year. She was the same Hei-Ran, the same girl who didn't know how to braid, who loves the Beatles, and hates the murder books, but loves Sofia's writing. The same girl who 4 years ago was learning how to ride her skateboard. She's the same Hei-Ran who will always be there for the Roman misfits, especially at the end of the following school year.

"Let me know how things go!" She whispers into Sofia's ear, leaving the Spanish-African girl confused, but she nodded nonetheless. Cedric's never been, and never will be possessive, but he just wants a second to ask this girl on a date. He asked Hei-Ran his best ideas on asking her out, and while it took him 3 minutes to calm her down, he instantly got bombarded with information.

"Don't give her flowers, give her one, her favorites are buttercups! She wants to go on a Hogsmeade date! Listen to her stories, compliment her, where that rainbow cardigan, with the jean jacket, she gossiped about it for weeks! Make it short and sweet!" She had responded.

"I know her favorite days are on Thursday, should I ask her then, or will it be too much Cedric? She tutors me on Thursdays, so maybe it's too much Cedric time?" He had asked, (Hei-Ran thought too much Cedric time is really cute) she just smiled and nodded, suggesting Saturday.

So now, here he was, licking his lips anxiously, giggling slightly. "Um. uh, I-," He let out, trying his hardest, but he was about to ask her out on a date. "I- I, okay," He took a deep breath, before continuing, "I was wondering if you wanted to go out on a date with me?"

"Yes!" She said, moments after. "I-I, Yes, I'd love that, when?"

"Next week, Saturday, I'll pick you up." He said, before tapping the barrels in front of the Hufflepuff common room to the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff. He walked into the common room, only to see Alexandre sitting on the chair, a questioning look on his face. When he saw his best friend nod, he let out this small chuckle of joy. Whoever said two best friends could not be pretty, they were wrong. Both Cedric and Alexandre were very handsome, pretty, and had girls throwing themselves on their feet for them.

Sofia made her way up to her room, she had a date with Cedric Diggory in a week, oh god, what would she wear, how would she do her hair, god, she had to tell her friends! She hadn't even told them about her kiss yet! She took out her fake galleon, and wrote down, '15 minutes RoR', she smiled silly. She wasn't worried about the fact Sirius wasn't there, he was probably with Remus.

15 minutes later, she was sitting in the Room of Requirements with her 4 friends by her side. "Cedric Diggory kissed me yesterday, and he asked me out on a date!"

"What was it like?"

"I'm living through you, tell me everything!"

"Gossip!"

"I knew you were going to date a Hufflepuff! I saw it!"

"You what? You saw it, and you didn't tell me?" She asked at Oni's words, "And you, Tokko, you told me that I would date the prettiest boy in school!" She gasped dramatically, feigning anger. The 5 gossiped relentlessly, talking about everything, Sofia caught up on all her work. But by the time it was 10:30 (far too early to be tired in Orla's opinion) they went to bed.

Sofia climbed into bed saying goodnight to her friends, her roommates, to the gods. Sofia woke up 3 hours later, sweat crawling down her back, terror in her eyes. She had just had one of those nightmares, the one that made you just want to wake up, but once you did, you had to think of what had just happened, but that was worse than living it. It was the kind that made you scream out in terrors, the kind that made you desperately sob for someone to hold you, for someone to save you. But no one ever comes to save you, no one comes to hold you, unless you crawl into your parent's bed, and hold onto their hands as you let out quiet sobs. The kind of nightmares that make your parents hold onto you to ground you, that makes you hold onto them desperately.

She went down to the common room, tears in her eyes, her arms holding onto her body. "Sofia, what's wrong?" Cedric asked, of course, it was Cedric. "I uh, had one of those nightmares," she whispered, afraid to look him in the eyes, god she hated her nightmares. "What, what would you do when you had those nightmares?"

"I would normally, uh, go to the Ravenclaw common room and answer the riddle and then sleep with Hei-Ran, but right, now I'm going to, sorry, no I'm not going to cry, right now, I'm going to go back to bed, good night suitor, I..." She couldn't continue, if she did she would start sobbing, she hated crying. She knew it was okay, and she knew it was okay to let herself cry, and sob, but not in front of anyone but her father and Hei-Ran.

"Wait, no, you can, come sleep in my bed, with me, it helps whenever I get nightmares." He said god was he asking this? "Are you sure, like are you, thanks," She whispered. He nodded, and took her into his arms, kissing her forehead. It was such a small gesture, but it was so caring, so loving, so sweet, so homey, so Cedric.

So that's how she ended up in Cedric Diggory's arms shivering slightly but feeling safe, so safe. He was shirtless but she chose to ignore that, because he was holding her, and making sure she was okay under the covers. Her feet were without socks, so he gave her some, and she was wearing Cedric's socks, in his bed, in his arms, with him. She always wondered how couples, not that they were a couple, but, how people ended up in beds together. Did they ask, 'oh can I sleep in your bed tonight?' or 'sleep in my bed, right now', she always thought it was such an awkward concept.

But, she wouldn't mind it now, because god she would ask 100 awkward questions to end up sleeping in the same bed with Cedric. And God did Sofia hate awkward things and awkward questions. 

\---


	14. twelve- tears and oh what a night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which sirius black sobs

SIRIUS Black always knew that he might never be free again, but when he has Sofia Chestley, the girl that saved him, have a constant eye on the rat that made him like this, he has a little more hope. He has a little more hope that he might see Harry freely again, or be able to see the outside world again. Because, of course, what's been going on is so much better than he expected, but it's not as much freedom as he wants.

He expected to be sleeping in the forbidden forest, shivering almost to death, scared of the other animals, and surviving off of rats and glimpses of the boy that he loves that reminds him so dearly of the boy that once took him in. He was always welcome at the Potters and the fact that people thought that he, Sirius Black, the boy that crawled into his friends' bed when it was storming, betrayed the two people he loved most and killed his best friend, was absurd.

Instead, he's sleeping in the Hufflepuff common room, the same one Emilia Salvatore must've slept in all those years ago. He gets yummy food from the house-elves that he's scared of being even slightly mean too, he gets to see Harry often. Sometimes, if he's lucky, he'll get a pet from the boy with his mother's eyes and his father's charisma. Sirius gets to listen to Ron and Hermione berate him for petting the black dog, because it's a sign of death, too which Harry responds, 'I'm Harry Potter, I'm going to die, either way might as well pet the cute dog' which never fails to crack Sirius up.

James would've laughed at a joke like that. Lily would've hit James on the arm for laughing and scoffed lightly, yet the smile on her hypothetical face wouldn't falter- not even for a second. Lily and James would've been so proud of Harry, who his friends were, who he was, who he would grow up to be. James would've loved Ron, his love for food, his jokes, his personality, he would've made him not feel like 'Harry Potter's friend' for once. Lily would've seen herself in Hermione, in her studious ways, in her motherly talk, in her way of being the smart one that keeps those she loves safe.

Oh, how James would've loved the Weasley Twins. He would've loved their pranks, he would've encouraged them, he would've loved their jokes, and how they annoyed Molly yet still loved her. The Twins are who the Marauders were, they even found the map, the map, the one that they loved so deeply. Sirius in his human form would've been sobbing at this point, but the tears he was letting out were getting into his dog hair and made it annoying and or hard to see (he was too upset to decide which one it was), so he stopped crying.

He almost doesn't notice it when Sofia comes back into the dorm on December 3rd, 7 days before she went home for Christmas and 1 day before her date with Cedric Diggory.

"Hey, hey, I can't tell if you're crying or if you're just sweating, but considering the fact it's December, I'm going to guess that you're crying, so let's go on a walk, we'll talk about it."

Sirius doesn't have the energy to fight her, so reluctantly, he grabs the dog leash the 'Roman Misfits' had made him in his mouth and hands it to her. He can still remember Hei-Ran come strutting into the room, her head tilted up, a look of pride on her face, Stan, Orla, and Oni trailing behind her, looks of pride and happiness on their faces, each holding onto a single brown paper bag. They presented a stitched collar with the words 'Padfoot's collar :)' the fabric itself was grey, with black stitching, the words were made of gold sewing thread. The letters 'R.M' was stitched into it as well, Sirius's dog smile was droopy yet meaningful.

The duo walked outside, the freezing winter air that made Sirius grimace because while he used to love it, he would've lived in that. The cool winter air that danced around the shabby dog, made his bones shake. It was the kind of cold that you could never recover from, it made you shake lightly, and no matter how many sweaters you wear, you won't ever recover from the cold. The sky was gloomy, it was almost as though it was frowning down on him. The wind danced around in cold bursts, it tickled Sofia's hair in hateful ways.

"You can change again, we're in that one cave," Sofia whispered, not wanting to say things so loudly in fear of someone tailing her. She knew it was irrational, all fears were, but her dad had taught her that you're rarely ever safe, so be prepared. Because of this, she always carried a Swiss Army knife on her, how she could use it to protect herself against witches and wizards, she didn't know. At least it was something.

She watched as Padfoot turned into Sirius, the black fur dissolving, the transformation always made her laugh, so the giggles left her mouth, without having to think about it. "So, let's talk about it, and don't say it's nothing, because I think talking stuff out helps." Her words came out in chunks, her teeth were chattering, and the wind wasn't helping.

"I miss them, so much. I thought it would be easier, knowing that Pete is still in the building, but every single thing reminds me of them. It reminds me of the pranks we threw, running down the hall, trash-talking Snivellus, making the map, becoming animagi, simply existing in their presence. I miss them, I miss them, and I miss them, but they're dead. They're gone, and I couldn't save them.

"I remember so vividly running to their house once I realized what was happening. I remember seeing that bastard coming out, a look of horror on his face, he gave them up. All of those 9 years with James, hearing him talk about his lily flower, pranking with him, having detention with him, sleepovers, gossiping, crying together, being okay with each other. He introduced me to a world of love, and I couldn't save him. He finally had a life with Lily, a world where they loved each other. They had a kid together. Lily, oh sweet Lily.

"She saved me in more ways than one, she gave me advice, she was witty, she helped me with homework, she was my fall girl. She introduced me to Abba, and told me it was okay to like it which seems so stupid because of course, I can like Abba, but still. And, I remember the world crashing down on me when they died when there was no smile on their face. When it was just them lying defenseless, and Harry was crying for his mother, his dead mother.

"They were my family."

"They still are," She replied, her eyes blinking furiously trying to stop the tears from flowing out because she wouldn't know how to deal if the people she loved most died. "Just because they died, doesn't mean the memories you have of them do. They don't have to be the Lily and James lying dead in their home, they can be the Lily and James bickering, or the Lily and James that were family. They can be whoever you want them to be."

Now, Sirius's tears didn't dry off automatically. It took lots of talk downs, screams, sobs, and soft singing, but eventually, they did. The two were half freezing, but it was okay, they were safe, and they had each other.

The next day Sofia woke up with a start, she had a date. Sofia had been on a few dates, but that normally only lead to summer flings. But, this, this was real. If this went smoothly she could be looking at a real boyfriend. One she would bring home, and meet her father, see her room, kiss her, they would be able to spend their time at Hogwarts as a couple. This wouldn't be the kind of date that would end, they had a short-lived relationship, they would break up and Sofia would never see them again.

She marched into the Ravenclaw common room after answering the riddle (she's quite wise) with a pile of clothes in her arms, a bag of hair supplies, and makeup under her chin. There's a tote bag that's swung over her shoulder that's swinging uncharacteristically calmly for the girl filled with excitement, and filled with socks and multiple pairs of shoes. Hei-Ran was already waiting for her in her dorm room, a cheesy smile on her face.

Hei-Ran pulled out the 4 outfits Sofia had planned the night before. One was a white collared shirt, a thin mock sleeve under, a yellow v neck knitted sweater, a puffy black jacket, tights, and a pair of white straight-leg pants. The next was a white thick mock neck shirt, a sweater vest, and tights with blue baggy jeans that had painted drawings scattered along it. The 3rd was a pair of tights that had been charmed to stay warm and dry, a mini leather skirt, a purple and white horizontally striped crewneck that had a crescent moon on the chest, a light brown turtleneck under. The final one was a pair of light-washed midrise jeans, a red turtleneck, and a windbreaker.

While Sofia preferred the 3rd option, Hei-Ran picked the first. So, reluctantly and both excitedly she put on the clothes. She fixed her bangs and puffed up her hair ever so slightly. She twisted back the pieces of hair near her bangs, twisted the pink-tinted hair back ever so slightly, and kept them in their places with 2 butterfly clips on each side, yellow and pink.

She did her makeup, brown eyeshadow with a little bit of eyeliner, highlighter, and blush. The duo danced around too 'December 1963 (Oh What a Night!)' by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons because what else would you do when your preparing for your first official date with the boy you like. At 8:47 am, the two walked out of the room giggling, a warm feeling of safety flowing through them.

That's the fun of friends, feeling safe with them. Giggling in the middle of the night, telling them no, you won't let them copy your homework, yet still do, baking early in the morning, going to the cinema, reading each other's writing- it's safety. It's a warm cup of tea on a winter morning that heats your entire body and leaves a content grin on your face. It's a cool summer night breeze after a hot day of drinking boba at the local mall. It's eating your favorite meals after a really shitty day.

It's having a dance party without having a care in the world. It's that bubbly feeling in your chest when that one person comes into the room. It's reading your favorite books in the reading nook while you watch the sunset. It's getting dressed in your favorite outfits that make you feel comfortable. It's writing the books you love and feeling a sense of pride once you realize that you wrote that. It's pointing out the constellations with your friends by your side and making some f them up because you don't know them. It's telling the boy you like the story of Cupid and Psyche because you love the Roman gods.

It's all of those good feelings at once, and Sofia wouldn't trade it for the world.

"So now, since you got with your dream boy, you have to help me get with Hermione."

"Uh, sorry to break it to you, govna," (Sofia loved speaking in a British accent as a joke) " but Hermione's straight."

"You mean to tell me Hermione Granger says she's straight?" Hei-Ran asks, a slight amount of audacity in her voice, her eyes rolling into her head, she continued, "She hangs out with boys all the time, and she's smart. No way in hell is she straight, I know the signs." Hei-Ran insists, Sofia can't tell whether it's her trying to tell herself she has a chance or trying to tell Sofia.

Like he said the previous day, Cedric is waiting for her in the Hufflepuff common room at 10:45. The group of 5 friends had had breakfast together earlier. They talked about drama, how Orla's relationship with George was going, how Stan's crush on Draco was going. Sofia had been utterly surprised when she found out.

"Guys, come close, I have a secret," Stan muttered. The 4 shared a look, it was eager and excitement, they lived for drama.

"I think Draco Malfoy is fit."

"Yeah, well no shit, everyone thinks he is!" Oni giggled, he had a habit of doing that at the oddest of moments. He giggled at the serious times, whenever Snape berated a Gryffindor, whenever Dumbledore said a speech when someone was crying. Oni never fully laughed, only giggled. But, when he did fully laugh, he laughed. He guffawed, he chortled, he chuckled, he did all of those descriptions words for laughing that Sofia didn't know.

Oni paused for a moment, he noticed Stan's wide eyes, the sweat forming on his brow, the way his adam apple bobbed slightly, his fingers tapping across the table, oh shit- he was being serious. "Oh, okay, well our lips are sealed," He shut his mouth and moved his fingers across it in a way of zipping his lips, after that, he moved his thumb and index finger down his chin.

"Hey, are you ready for our date?" Cedric asked, taking in the curly-haired girl in front of him.

"I sure am, Cedric, let's get going!" 

\--


	15. thirteen- the date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they go on a date

CEDRIC and Sofia's date had been going smoothly for the last 30 minutes. At least that's what he thought, despite Cedric's looks and charm, he had never actually been on a date. Alexandre had told him that he was a date virgin, but Cedric had just told him off, saying something about the fact the word virgin was misogynistic. Who cares if you've had sex before (apparently men), and why does there have to be a word for it?

The walk to the carriages had been filled with nervous tension, as all first dates were. It doesn't matter if it's with the 'right' or perfect person, or even the shittiest human imaginable, the beginning of first dates are awkward. Sofia had chosen against commenting that she could see the Thestrals, that wouldn't be a good first date conversation. You're seeing this person in a new light because it used to just be stupid pining, or writing their names with hearts surrounding it in your diary, but now this is a whole new potential, so you just stand there awkwardly, trying not to mess it up.

Cedric has been panicking at this point, because shit, he might've just ruined the perfectly good friendship he has with a girl he wanted to date. Sofia can sense this from a mile away, the fidgeting, the clicking of his tongue (which she hates), the awkward stances, she knows it all, and tries her best to diffuse it. "So, um," She hypocritically clicks her tongue, "What are your parents like?" She almost went for the 'When's the next Quidditch game?' But Cedric's entire life isn't about Quidditch, unlike what everyone else thinks.

The smile that always made Sofia and hundreds of other's knees turn into gush suddenly was placed upon his face. Sofia kind of knew how much Cedric loved his parents, she didn't know everything about him, and it didn't really bother her. She doesn't have to know everything about her partner, she likes learning about the person gradually, not knowing everything about the person all at once.

She likes the excitement of asking questions and hoping you don't overstep the boundaries. She almost feels like a psychopath when she feels the rush of excitement flow through her when she has to fix whatever she says, so the friendship isn't ruined. She likes the rush of adrenaline, and the panic, she likes it all, even if it is a little wrong of her.

Everyone has their vices, this is her favorite.

"My dad, Amos, he's uh, he's great, he's my role model," Cedric had said, a shy smile on his face, "I look for his validation, I mean I know should, he's my father and I should look at him for validation, but it's on a different level, you get me?"

She did. She looked for the validation of her dead mother every day, whether if it's in her outfits or her grades. There's something different with looking for validation from people who are alive, then dead, because one you know, and the other will haunt you until you're no longer yourself.

"I do, what does he do for a living? What house was he?" She asked, her eyes practically glowing with excitement. Cedric goes on about his job at the ministry and the stories he's been told and thinks that it's such a Sofia Chestley thing to listen about your date's parents for 30 minutes.

Cedric sees Sofia's hands shaking, his mind goes back to what Alex told him before the date, "If her hands shake, say something witty about holding her hand, make her laugh, and bam! Hand holding will be a new thing!"

"I'm supposed to say something witty- wait, no, let me start over," Sofia giggles and throws her eyes back behind her eyelids. "Alright, Venus, whatever you think is best," Cedric made a mental note to do some more research about the Roman Gods so on their next date Sofia doesn't have to listen to him drone on about his parents.

"Okay, okay, get prepared to be blown away by my wonderful joke. So, m'lady, I see your hands are shaking, would you care for me to warm them up, with my ever warm hands?" He said in one of those fancy British accents that you hear at plays.

"Oh, yes kind sir, I would live if you accompanied my cold fingers!" She nodded, a shy smile on her face. So, Cedric's hand slipped into Sofia's easily, as though it was fate, and maybe, it was. Her almost smooth hands gripped his mainly smooth hands. She didn't know how they were so smooth, considering the fact he played quidditch, and helped Professor Sprout with her gardening.

Cedric leads her into The Three Broomsticks, allowing her to pick a table, she chose the corner booth so they sat sitting across from each other. She had learned this from her previous dates, never sit next to each other, it's awkward, and hard to talk to each other. The only way this rule should be discarded is when you're sitting on the metro, or if they're the only seats available.

"I'll go get us a Butterbeer," He said while checking his pockets for his money. "I'm uh, I'm actually allergic to Butterbeer, so can you get me some Gillywater?" She asked, almost embarrassed. Who the hell is allergic to Butterbeer? She tried her best to shake the thoughts out of her mind because she can't control what she's allergic to. It's not her fault! Blame her genes!

"It's not embarrassing, don't worry," He said, as though he could read her thoughts. She watched as he walked up to the bar, his cheeks flushed lightly, a giddy childish smile on his face. He was doing his nervous tic of playing with the tail of his eyebrow.

"First date?" Rosmerta asked, leave it up to good ol' Rosmerta to get the deets. "Uh, yeah, is it, um, is it that obvious, or?"

"Kind of, you're the folk most students want to date," She said, with a thick Irish accent. "Do her good for me, the girls been through too much as it is, I mean losing her mum is tough enough, but I heard some people saying she's a basket case, but no one will ever say to her face. It'll hurt the poor girl's spirits."

Cedric glanced back to Sofia, his Sofia (not that she's property or anything), people thought she was a basket case, why? Sure, sometimes her head was in the clouds, but that's it. Even before they were close, or the kind of close they are now, he never thought she was even kind of weird.

Maybe it's her friends? Maybe it's the way Hei-Ran's never uttered a word in class but tells the funniest jokes. Maybe it's the way Stanley will just drone on about the most boring shit, but somehow make it funny. Maybe it's the way Oni's bold in a way most people can never imagine to be bold and has no filter, at all. Maybe it's the way Orla draws in abstract ways and tells people if they're wrong. Maybe it's the fact the 4 are so messy without each other but work so well with each other when Sofia gets thrown into the mix.

"What do you mean, basket case?" If someone was calling her a basket case, he would want to find out, because Sofia doesn't deserve that. "Well, I've heard she's a nice young lady, that she is, but I've heard her friends are weird, and I've never met them so I haven't been able to decide that, but apparently that is enough to make her a basket case, teenagers can suck, just don't tell her please."

Cedric nodded, a grimace on his face, he took the drinks back to Sofia who was patiently waiting. Sofia had always struggled with being patient, always wanting to jump ahead of things, and get a new start. Her father had put her in etiquette classes the year after her mother's death, and while it helped her, it was so intimidating. Being in a room of Muggles, thinking she could've had as happy a life of them, seeing them giggle, and talk with each other. While she did fit in, it always sucked leaving them.

"Are you going home for Christmas?"

"I am, why?" He said, a thick mustache made of the froth left on the top of his lip. He wiped it off with the sleeve of his sweater, but not before Sofia smiled at him, which made him want to put it back on so he could see her smile childishly again. "There's this movie playing at my local cinema, it's called the Dead Poets Society, have you heard of it?"

Cedric racked his brain, searching for any recognition of it. He blushed at the thought of what she might be asking him. "I-, no, I don't think so, what's it about?"

Sofia's face lit up, even more, if that was possible. "It's set in the '50s, at this all-boys boarding school. They have this new, amazing, English teacher, and they're forced to deal with this new environment. They go on this adventure and learn all about poets. The first time I watched it, I was in the cinema with some friends, and I couldn't stop crying at the ending. I choose to ignore the ending, because it's, it's quite heartbreaking."

She paused, collecting her thoughts from the faraway place that they were in. "They're playing it at this local drive-in, and I know how to drive, I need to take the test when I turn 16, but I have a fake drivers license. If, if you don't want to go that's fine, I promise! But, I-I hope you would like it, at least I think you would, oh god this is embarrassing." She muttered, throwing her face into her hands.

"Are you asking me on a date, Sofe?"

"I am!" She returned, all too quickly.

"Blimey, Sofe, we're already on a date, yes. I can sort it out with my parents, they'll probably love to meet you!"

She smiled lightly in return.

The two continued on their date, hand in hand. They walked around, giggling at each other's jokes even if they weren't funny. That was another one of those cute first dates things. Being giddy and excited in each other's presence. It's that air of new beginnings, new stories, new lives, new everything. It's that new trial period, and sometimes, at least in these cases, new is fun.

He dropped her off at the Hufflepuff stairs, a slight smile on his face. She pecked his cheek, waved goodbye, and walked up the stairs, taking in each breath, taking in the date, the little necklace he had gifted her and placed around her neck. It was a beaded one, full of gems that had special healing and spiritual qualities.

She had asked if he could place it on her. He happily obliged, and found out that it was much more intimate than he knew it out to be- whether it was good or bad? He didn't know.

Cedric walked back to his dorm, a triumphant smile on his face, his hand on his cheek where he kissed her. He opened the door to see Oni and Alexandre waiting patiently, cheeky grins on their faces.

"Yes!" Oni exclaimed, "Step one, aka, go out on a date is fini! The next step is to go on even more dates!" Alexandre laughed at his childishness, while Oni checked the box of 'Step One' of a piece of paper that said 'Wooing the girl!' "Well, that one's already in the making! So step three, asking her to be my girlfriend!"

The two fell asleep, on cloud 9. Another one of Sofia's first date rules, if you don't fall asleep grinning and giggling to your best friends, whether it's over the telephone or in-person, something went wrong.

And it seemed as though, nothing could ever go wrong when Cedric was involved.


	16. fourteen- going home and getting high

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they go home

ORLA and Sofia were sitting in the Room of Requirements, smoking weed and giggling dramatically over nothing. Orla's hair was a brown halo around her head, her eyes closed, trying to take in the moment forever. Her mouth was bubbling with laughter, the kind of childish laughter that comes out of your mouth when you're swinging on the swings or riding your bike down a hill. The brunette's hair was tipped back slightly, her chin was up and she looked like a model, in all of her almost bohemian-but-not-really-bohemian-because-it's-winter-in-fucking-Scotland glory.

Sofia was holding the joint in between her middle and pointer finger, she took a long drag, before blowing the smoke in Orla's face. Orla swatted the smoke as though it would push it away, but failed. "What do you think of Cedric?" Sofia asked, her words slurring. Sofia had never been able to take alcohol or drugs well, at all.

"He's kinda- kinda really fucking cool," Orla responded, braiding her hair. "He's really fit, not meaning to light inadvertently, that's a word right, um, anyways, I don't want to like, take him from you," She blinked, "He's not property, but like you get what I mean," Sofia let out a cheesy smile, not fully comprehending the words. "I think I might break up with George," Orla whispers.

"Wait, why, why do you think so?" Sofia asks, sobering up slightly. "I mean, he's great and all, and I like him, but we don't click anymore. It's not the same as what it was when I snog him, I'm not as happy as I was before, I just enjoy being alone more." Orla says, tears shining in her eyes. Orla's never been poetic, at least like Sofia is, but she's talking about something so serious, it doesn't matter whether it's poetic or not, she'd cry over it.

"Great! Now, I'm sobbing, and sobbing is so fucking pathetic!" Orla murmurs, hitting her forehead with the palm of her hands. "No- no- it's okay to cry! Crying isn't pathetic! In fact, it's incredibly pathetic to not cry! Crying shows emotions, and not having emotions sucks! Don't you remember how ugly Mr.Darcy was when he wasn't in love with Elizabeth, and showed no emotion. But, then he was so handsome when he yearned for her!"

"Oh god! Not Mr.Darcy!" Orla exclaims before the tears started building up in her eyes. "Hey, do you want to talk about something else?" Sofia watches as Orla nods her head deep in thought. Sofia ponders, eyes rolling back into her head like she'll be able to see the words, and maybe because of the weed, she can actually see the words.

"Do you think when snowmen melt, they go to snowman heaven?"

"No, what if they go to snowman hell? Like what if they sin?"

"How the hell can a snowman sin?"

"I don't know, maybe they gave another snowman a blowjob, or maybe a suckjob because if they blow then the snow will fall off? Or maybe, they actually like Rain Must Fall by Queen, instead of saying it's okay because it's Queen," Orla looks at her audaciously.

"Don't you dare offend Queen! It's like the best band ever!"

"You only listened to two bands before I met you!"

"Okay, Miss I only listen to the Smiths unless there are other songs on your playlist!"

"Did you see Die Hard? Professor Snape looked a lot like, what it's called, character!"

"Yes! I did, let's go ask him about it!" Orla giggled, standing up, and eating some Dunkaroos. Sofia stood up with her help, drank some water, shoved a breath mint in each of their mouths, and walked off. "Do-do you think there are potions that help were off the, oh! 'Ello-" Orla snorted, at Sofia's horrible joke. "Did- did you know, you-" Sofia was cut off by the mean professor.

"What is the meaning of this Ms. Chestley, and Ms. Rasherton?" Snape asked, almost cruelly. "Nothing, Professor, there is no meaning to anything! Ever! At all!"

"Oo, Sofe, don't get all phili-philisop-philosophical on me!" Orla smiled, nudging her in the ribs, "Not the ribs! Not the ribs!" Sofia was suddenly very serious and looking angrily at Orla. "What! Why not the ribs?" Orla stomped her foot, quite childishly. "My ribs are too perfect to be nudged! If they even get dented, my lungs can fall out! Isn't that right Prof?"

Severus looked amused by the conversation happening, "No! That's not how biology works, talk to the hand!" Orla threw her hand up and shoved it very close to her friend's face. "I will not talk to the hand! Give- me," Sofia and Orla were now fighting, Sofia was trying to grab Orla's face, and Orla kept biting her hands. "Wait!" Orla stopped at the word, "Why are their Reeses pieces on your face!"

She turned to her professor, "Don't you see the Reeses Prof?" Snape simply nodded no, before saying again. "What is the meaning of this?" Sofia shrugged, and grabbed Orla's hand, dragging her away, "Goodbye, Greasy Prof!" Orla looked at her friend in horror, and started sprinting. "Shit!" The two went off into the halls, high, and smiling.

Sofia was stress packing. Sofia never packed the night before, or the week before, it was always the day of. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" She said, stuffing clothes into her suitcase. There were clothes spread across the floor, she was desperately searching for her novels. "Accio Novels by Sofia!" She tried, but they didn't come zooming towards her like they would if they were close. "Where the fuck are my books!" Sofia erupted.

"Woah, Woah, Woah! Calm down!" Jenny, one of her dormmates said, "I can't! My handwritten books are gone! Gone! I can't find them, they're my books, my saviors, my fucking writing, shit, why can't I find them?" Jenny put her hands onto Sofia's shoulders, in an attempt to calm her down. "Did you 'Accio' them?"

"Yes, I did!" Jenny began checking under everyone's bed, seeing that they're not there, she went out into the common room to see Oni reading them. "Oni!"

"Yeah?" He turned around looking at the pretty Vietnamese girl, "Sofia's been looking for her books for ages! She's on the verge of crying!" Oni looked horrified at this, "Oh, tell her I'm sorry! Here you go!" Jenny took the books gratefully, and handed them to Sofia, she was already cleaning up the mess with magic.

"Thanks!"

The train ride back home was always exciting. Sofia was so excited to be back in her own bedroom, in her own city, in her own apartment, with her own father. It was all so nice. It was its own world- Christmas. The lights and the ornaments on the Christmas trees, the markets, the food, the environment, Christmas were just so fucking amazing.

She would go to the Plaça de Catalunya Christmas market with her 16-year-old neighbor and make out behind the yarn stand as they had done for the past 2 years. She would go on the subway to Catalan to see the pretty ocean, and then into the Maremagnum mall, window shop, and then go home.

Then the next day she would go ice skating and somehow fool a cute teenage boy to pay for her skates and maybe a hot chocolate if she's feeling extra flirty. But, this is different now, because while sure, she and Cedric aren't dating, but it'll feel wrong to make out with the handsome boy across the way, or flirt with the horny teenagers in the ice skating line.

The thing is, Sofia's a sucker for tradition, so maybe holding in the secrets that she'll never utter to anyone but her diary or Hei-Ran, is maybe worth it. Her thoughts are filled with contemplation as the blurs of green flows past the window, it starts off with the green slowly inking into the window, and ends with a sea of green being painted into the window.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Orla asks, they had been specifically close after their high accident. "Qu- sorry, what?" Sofia grins, eyes flicking out of their daze. "It's an American phrase, it means, tell me what you're thinking, or perish!" She exclaims, and suddenly Sofia's Christmas spirit is back. "Okay, so you guys know the market de Navidad? Yeah, well I always snog with my neighbor afterward, and like flirt with people so they can pay for my ice skates when I go ice skating, and is it wrong to do that now?"

"You fancy Cedric, right?" Orla questions, twirling her hair. "I do, I absolutely do," Sofia smiles, slightly confused. "Well, then there's your answer, it is wrong to snog your neighbor when you and Cedric are going to a drive-in together," Orla smiles, before focusing on the game of B.S happening.

"B.S, B.S, I call your bullshit! Ha! Take that loser!" Hei-Ran says to Stanley, who's laughing at the fact he has about 50 new cards. "No! No, um where's my wand?"

"What, why are you looking for your wand?"

"So, I can obliviate you, you won't know who you are, or who the most amazing people in the world is, spoiler alert, it's us! You'll only know that you did not call my B.S!"

Hei-Ran gasps dramatically, before announcing, "Not if I do it to you first!" So, the two dig around in their bags, looking for their wands, they hadn't noticed that they were pushed into Sofia's hair. When they finally did notice, they ran over to her, Stan tripped on her stray bag, Hei-Ran tripping on Stan, the two collapsed onto her. "Get off of me!" Sofia says, kicking and thrashing under the weight of two teenagers.

Draco walks into the compartment, a smirk on his face, "Well! Look at that, the mudblood is finally hooking up with someone! And, won't you look at that, she's quite the exhibitionist!" The group of 5 instantly tense up, not only at the word but at the presence of the platinum blonde that is Hei-Ran's and Oni's relative.

"Well! Look at that it's the pureblood with daddy issues, that has to make fun of other people to feel better and pissed his bed until he was 10! And, won't you look at that, he has to be with his bodyguards so they can protect him from the icky horrible 5th years!" Hei-Ran smiles sourly.

Crabbe and Goyle looked at him before laughing, "You pissed yourself until you were 10! Are you gonna piss yourself now?" Draco looks slightly mortified but covers it up with another crude joke. "Aw, does your bestie have to stick up for you, because your mummy can't! Ooh, I wonder how hell is" Sofia bites her tongue, and goes to stand up. She walks over to Draco, collecting some spit in her mouth.

She spits on his shoes, he looks at her like he'll do something that will end him up in Azkaban. But, she acts first.

She lands a punch, square on his nose, a sickening crunch causing a very psychopathic smile to form on her face. "You bitch! You broke my nose! My father will hear about this!" Draco aunts off, his goons trailing behind him.

"Your daddy has to fight your battles for you, boo-hoo!" She calls out, walking back into the compartment. Hei-Ran is looking at her in admiration, Orla and Oni are wooping for her, and Stan looks mortified. "What the fuck was that!" He yells.

"What do you mean, what the fuck was that I put him in his place!" Stan looks at her anxiously, "Sofe, you're a muggle-born, you're black! And Draco's never liked you, and by punching him, you put a big fucking target on your back, don't you get that!" The terror sits into her eyes, shit.

"Well, I- I have my wand, and my knife, and you guys! Yes, I have you guys!" Hei-Ran looks at her with kind eyes, trying to calm her down with a glance. "Yeah, yeah, you, you have us," The Asain-Scottish girl agrees.

When the train comes to a stop, Sofia's bouncing with excitement, again. She grabs her things, and runs out of the train, to see her father waiting patiently, a grin on his face. "¡Mi amor! ¿Cómo estás? Hay tanto de qué hablar, ¿qué pasa con ese chico lindo sobre el que escribiste? ¿Puedo conocerlo? Te extrañé tanto, ¡no puedo creer que te hayas ido!"

"¡Papá! Espera, sí, lo conocerás, ¿y esperaba que pudiéramos cenar con sus padres alguna vez?" Her father ponders for a moment, "Si, cuando los conozca, podremos resolverlo, así que ahora, ¡señálalo! Which of the bunch, of several, in a group is yours?" Mr. Chestley's English had always been sucky, but he tried.

"That one, over there!" She said, pointing out the boy, so the duo walk over, giggling like teenagers. "'Ello, I am, Romeo, Sofia's father, I assume, you are the Diggory's?" He had clearly been practicing his English, which made Sofia smile. "Yes! Oh, Sofia it's so nice to meet you, we've heard so much about you! Cedric here, can't stop talking about you!"

"Mum! Stop!" He grins, not really meaning it. "¿Necesitas que te traduzca?" She whispers to her father, who only shakes his head no. By the time the two left they had a dinner date with the other family.

They spent the plane ride sharing stories and eating snacks. Then the car ride was spent talking about the new grocer at the market, and all the new drama happening at his job. It was nice being home, in her own bed, with photos of her and her friends on the wall. There were paintings, books, stuffed animals, toys, cd's, a typewriter, pens, and clothes all around. It was warm and homey, it was so completely perfect.

She walked into her kitchen, grabbing some matches, and turning back into her room, humming 'Turbo Lover' by Judas Priest. She lit up the match, lighting the vanilla candle. She put in her 'Doolittle' into her CD player. She laid back onto her bed, smiling happily, singing along to Debaser.

"Girlie so groovy

I want you to know

Don't know about you

But I am un chien andalusia" She sang out, moving her hips to the song, perfectly and utterly content. "Mrs. Darcy" She whispers because life as well might be a movie at that moment. 

\--


	17. fifteen- prideful smiles and dead poets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she has a day out

CW// mentions of su*cide, and spoilers for dead poets society

PRIDEFUL smiles have never really been Sofia's thing. She's all for smiling under her covers or shy grins that control your face, but prideful smiles make her anxious. She doesn't like the 'what are you smiling about' questions, because they always ruin her mood. Why can't she just be happy because of the song playing on the radio or she finally got over her writer's block, being happy doesn't have to be this big thing, it can be underappreciated.

But, Sofia's going to say fuck it, fuck the hate for prideful smiles, because her father's given her enough money for the day, and she's allowed to go out and explore Barcelona, even if she's done it countless times before. She's standing in the flat complex elevator, humming along to 'All the Young Dudes' by Mott the Hoople and David Bowie. Her copy of Aeneid in Spanish was tattered and ripped and was being held in her hands with such interest.

She stepped out into the cold, hugging herself with the jacket, tucking her book into the same tote bag that held her wand. When her fingers brushed the piece of wood, she grimaced and almost quivered. She still remembers how it felt to hold her wand for the first time. The electricity flowed through her, and there was always a slight buzz when the wood with stars etched into it touched her fingers. After her mamá died, the buzz that had always been a sound that felt came from a different world abruptly stopped.

She won't sugar coat it, it sucked. Feeling that small bit of light just come to a stop, like a candle reaching the end of its wax. She used to hold her wand any chance she got, but now, she'll hold it only when it's needed, and that's still stretching it.

Sofia shoves the thought deep inside her head, next to the internalized homophobia, and racist comments that she's been told over the years. She probably won't think about it until it falls through the cracks of her mind. Sofia runs down the Metro entrance, knowing the next train leaves in 3 minutes. She slides through the people, getting onto the train heading South.

She talks to the elderly woman next to her, half-listening, half acting like she's paying attention. She gets off on her stop, gets onto the next train, and does the same thing. After the 45 minutes are over, she's walking towards the Labyrinth Park of Horta. She pays the €2.23 entrance fee, and lets the Smiths' 'The Queen is Dead' control her.

She runs in the maze, her giggles erupting, she pushes past tourists, says the occasional sorry, and sometimes trips. She laughs as her dizziness becomes the only thing she can focus on. Her body twists and turns at every right or left. It takes her 20 minutes to get out of the maze when it should've only taken her 5, but she's okay with it.

She's okay with the burning in her lungs, with the trembling in her fingers, and the slight sweat all over her body. She's okay with the prideful smile on her face.

The next thing on her to-do list for the day is, to visit the Teatre Grec. It's an amphitheater that's surrounded by nature, a few people, and the secret location for Sofia's books. No matter what kind of book she's writing, adventure's, murder mysteries, love stories, the Teatre Grec is always mentioned. She describes it quite beautifully, really. How could she not, with it's cracked stone stairs that whisper tales of the past into your ear. With the green trees that dance in the wind, and encompass you whole, without a single regret. With its wildlife inviting you to come and sit, but never to leave.

It's a world in its own, that Sofia loves wholeheartedly. There's a tree that Sofia's always used, and when she reaches it, she sees the 'Sofia era aqui' scratched into the tree slightly higher than it was when she last saw it. Sofia inches into it, sighing happily. She pulls out her current read, IT by Stephen King.

"¿Quieres tu barquito, Georgie? -El payaso sonreía. George también sonreía, sin poder evitarlo. -Si, lo quiero." She read quietly, her Spanish flowing out far more quickly than her English ever could.

By the time it was 5, it was dark, so Sofia booked it. She ran out of the forest as fast as she could, past the seats, and into the street. It's not her fault she's scared of the dark, she just is. It doesn't help when you're reading a book about a murderous clown living in sewers. Sofia thinks she'll never go down into the public dried sewers ever again.

Sofia runs onto the Metro, a feeling of happiness, the wind that blew through her hair left it a little messy. The cold nipped and pinched at her cheeks, leaving an imprint. She panted slightly as she sat down on the Subway, reading.

Her father was in the kitchen, cooking taquitos. "Hola Papi!" She yells into the apartment. "Hola, mi amor! ¿Cómo era su día?" He asks, she tells him about all of her adventures. He tells her something about not causing a ruckus, she laughs and promises she won't anymore, but the duo knows it's a lie.

"You-you got a regalo from a gentleman specific," He tells her, "Aye no, Papi. Es lo opuesto. Specific es primero y gentlemen es segundo," She tells him with a hint of sympathy in her voice. Her father had been trying to learn English for about 3 years and was still failing. His verbs got mixed up, used the wrong terms, and often stuttered. But, he was trying and Sofia would be there to help him every step of the way.

"I put the g-gift in your bed," He catches himself, "No! It's on the bed, si?" She nods and watches as he smiles triumphantly. She jumps onto her bed, careful to miss the package. Cedric's curvy handwriting is scrawled onto the brown package. In Spanish he wrote, bird need food. Well, that's not exactly what he wrote. It was 'la pajaro nesesita comedah' but she can translate. "Le dio comida al buo?"

"Si," He said, smiling. Sofia went back into her room, she pulled the brown wrapping off the paper, seeing a brand new notebook and 'The Narrative of John Smith'. It makes her smile, and hold the books lovingly. She opens the writing notebook, to see Cedric's writing. 'For all of your good ideas, and maybe some bad ones too,' she doesn't know how to feel about it.

Sofia's leaning onto her father's car with some snacks in her car. She has a fake driver's license in her purse and waits by the local park. When Cedric and his father come walking out of the bathroom, Sofia can't help but let the prideful grin fall on her face again. "Hey!" He calls out to her, and she waves.

"Hello, Sofia. How are you?" Amos asks, he gives her a warm smile. "I'm doing well, Mr. Diggory. Thanks for uh allowing Cedric to come with me!" He looks at her like she's crazy, "It's Amos dear, and of course, he would've been so upset if he couldn't come." Cedric looks so embarrassed, but it fades away when Sofia smiles lovingly.

Cedric says goodbye to his father, and Amos disappears into the bathroom. "Hey," Sofia tells him, kissing his cheek softly. Cedric blushes brightly and plays with the cuffs of his yellow knitted sweater. "You missed," He tells her, his hands cupping her face.

Sofia smiles into the kiss, it's a warm kiss. Filled with missed days, and 3 months of yearning. It's a cute early date kiss that Sofia's never had time for. It's a soft sweet kiss that's like vanilla ice cream on a cool summer night. The entire kiss lasts about 5 seconds and Sofia's sad when it finishes.

"Let's go!" He tells her, attempting to slide over the hood, but failed, falling onto his butt. The two laughed, Sofia at him, Cedric with her. "Let's- let's ignore that," he giggled, and she smiles at him. "I mean, you just kind of plopped down, and it was hilarious, where did you learn that from?" He looks at her for a second, "I watched a few er movies this weekend, to learn about little things to impress you with."

"Ced, you'll never need to impress me, you know that right? Unless maybe you hurt my best friends, then to impress me you need to get me an 'Everything' Bangles CD" She tells him, watching as his eyes soften. "You've always been such a fucking incredible person, and you never fail to amaze me, so cut yourself some slack, Cedric. I mean it," He opens his mouth as she starts the car, going down the street.

"I- I, have no words, you're so great, and you care so much," He tells her, taking in the streets of Barcelona. "So, tell me this, what movies have you watched?" She listens to him talking about Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Footloose, and Heathers. "Heathers was such a cool movie, but it freaked me out so much. Like, I get it, there's the hot couple, one's a psychopath, the other's the one that just has to save everyone!"

"Orla's obsessed with that movie, she knows it word for word! You should talk to her about it, when I first watched the movie, it was like 4 years ago, so I was 11, I couldn't take my eyes off of JD for the entirety of the movie. Orla and George were them for Halloween, do you remember?"

"Yes, oh shit I do! It didn't register in my brain until now, oh god, that was such a cute psychotic couples costume!"

"Yes! If they somehow end up in Azkaban together, after murdering like 200 people, then they'll have a couples costume to fall back on!"

When the two pull into the drive-in, they're laughing, and their cheeks hurt from their childish joy. As the words 'TOUCHSTONE PICTURES' show up on the screen, Cedric watches as Sofia's smile grows yet fades at the same time. It's the kind of smile that's excited for the thing that's coming but is anticipating the ending that makes all the previous happiness go away.

Cedric watches in such confusion as bagpipe music starts to play, and a group of boys with banners start to march. "What-" She cuts him off, "Shhh, it'll make sense, I promise," She tells him. So, he quiets down and watches as Neil and Todd (she told him the name of the characters) get introduced to each other. "They were so interested in each other, but since it's set in the '50s they don't kiss," her voice is angry.

When the redhead shows up on the screen, she silently curses. "Fucking gingers," She exclaims. "Wait, no! Not Meeks, fuck Cameron though!" Cedric watches as the movie progresses. It's not like anything he's ever seen. About 25 minutes in, Cedric whispers to her, "This Neil kid looks good in glasses," She smiles at him, "He looks good in everything, he's Robert Sean Leonard!" He rolls his eyes at her but silently agrees.

He takes in the deep blues of the night that shines back on him as the group of boys run through the forest and into the cave. He takes in the reading of poems, and the dancing and singing in the forest. He watches the class step into the courtyard and play soccer together. He watches as Meeks and Pitts finally figure out the radio. Their days spent out on their land turn into Neil and Todd flirting but not really flirting with 'No's' and running around their dorm. He watches Sofia as she closes her eyes when Neil types a letter that his father is supposed to be writing.

He takes in the Knox making a fool of himself over Chris, and as he gets hit. He watches as Neil's father gets mad over Neil's play, and as Sofia tenses up. He watches as the play happens, and how Sofia's once content smile fades into nothing. He holds her hand, as her eyes closed during the fight. She doesn't flinch or grimace, she knows the fights coming, and she's never been abused.

His eyes widen as he watches Neil open up the window and place his hat on his head. They widen even more as he pulls out his father's gun. They watch her intently as she sobs at Neil's father racing out of bed. He holds her as his mother and father hold his body. He lets the tears fall from his eyes as Todd throws up in the snow. The tears turn to anger as Cameron bitches to his once friends. He cries as Charlie throws a punch at Cameron.

He listens to Sofia tell him that that's how Nazi's rose in power, by fear. He watches so intently as Todd protests and stands on his desk. He smiles as more follow, and as Mr.Nolan freaks. Neil would've loved this, he thinks. He would've loved seeing his Todd, his friend's rebel, stand up for him. His eyes flow with water as Mr.Keating smiles at his students because really they'll be his students forever.

He doesn't take in the fact that the movies over until Sofia pokes him lightly. Her eyes are red from the tears and her cheeks have stains.

"Well, that happened," He tells her.

"Yeah, it did." The two pause.

"Well, want to get some fast food and then make out in the back seat of my car?"

There's a giggle from the gods that Sofia swears she can almost hear.


	18. sixteen- Christmas gifts and adrenaline highs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they are happy

CHRISTMAS days come and go. It's a tradition for the Chestley's to celebrate Christmas on both the 24th and 25th. It started before Sofia was born, the first Christmas Romeo and Luisa were married.

Luisa grew up with Latin American culture surrounding her. Her mother was Guatemalan, and her father was Nicaraguan. Every year, they would tell her, 'Luisa, mi niña, la Navidad es el 24, no el 25,' so that's what they did. Christmas presents under the tree on the 24th, never the 25th. Christmas for Luisa always came with getting masa from tamales on her hands, and the sound of her tia's and tio's gossiping about the family. By the time she met Romeo, the 24th of December was Christmas day, not eve.

Romeo grew up in Spain, with white adoptive parents. Christmas was the 25th, always. It was filled with Christmas carols, drinking Nestle hot chocolate, never Abuelita. Christmas presents were what he woke up to the 25th, a glass of partially drunken milk, and half bit cookies by their side. Christmas with Mistletoe on ceilings, and cold in the air. To Romeo, Christmas was the 25th, always was, always will be.

Sofia woke up with presents under the tree both days. They were from friends, really distant family, neighbors, her father's coworkers, and some acquaintances. Sofia ripped them open with excitement, eager to see what people thought fit her. There were watercolor paints, cook books (Sofia was horrible at cooking), CD's, jewelry, socks, hair care items, and Sofia's favorite, an array of new posters, and new drum sticks, and a mock drum set.

As much as Sofia loved being cliche, and saying that Cedric's gift was her favorite, it wasn't. Sorry, not sorry. Sure, 'The Narrative of John Smith' and a brand new notebook are good things, they just almost lack personality. Sofia worships Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes work, but that doesn't mean she likes all of his work. A notebook is something she needs, but there are certain kinds she likes. Cedric got her one with pages that you can easily rip out, a big mistake. They can fall out easily, and tempt her to rip out the pages she doesn't like, but sometimes these pages have substance, a substance that some of her chapters lack.

She'll charm the notebook when she gets to school.

But, the posters, new drum pads, and sticks are her favorite. The posters from the late '70s and early '80s made a grin erupt onto Sofia's face. David Bowie, T-Rex, Sweet, Blue Oyster Club, Queen, The Pretenders, They Might be Giants, Gentleman Afterdark, Talking Heads, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Ramones, and a lot more. These posters were frayed, and ripped, and loved. They were messy and old, but god they were so cool.

The drum sticks had been carved into, and to some that may have been something horrible, but to Sofia they were perfect. Sofia's hands often got sweaty when she played and having your drum sticks slide out of your hands wasn't fun. They were the classic light brown, classic heaviness, classic feel. But, for some reason, they were so perfect. The mock drum set was clearly magic. It was mini and red. Whenever you tapped any of the tom's or drums, the sound magnified and only Sofia could hear it. When Sofia tried to find out a melody, it gave her suggestions, original suggestions.

Sofia bawled when she learned the full capacity of the item. The gift was anonymous but she had a feeling she knew who it was from, Sirius.

He had listened to her complaints about sweaty hands, desire for posters for her bedroom, and the constant difficulty of figuring out rhythms. He had listened to them all, truly, truly listened. Maybe, there is a good thing to taking in an escaped criminal.

On the 29th of December, Sofia went out again. She went into the city center, a copy of Queen's Greatest Hits playing in her ears. There's a music store across the street from where Sofia's standing, so she crosses the street. The store's name is TIENDA DE DISCOS DE LUISA, it's a sign and Sofia knows it.

There's the sound of a bell ringing as Sofia pushes open the door. The store manager greets her like she's an old friend. "Hola, buenos dias!" He calls out as she smiles warmly at the smell of vinyls and CDs. "¿Hay algo que tengas en mente que te gustaría?" She shakes her head no but walks over to the new releases.

"Este es un álbum nuevo, tiene cierta sensación," He holds up 'Pop Smear' by The Verve Pipe, she takes it. The album cover is full of bright colors. Neon yellows, pinks, oranges, and purples are painted along the cover. Sofia looks at the song titles and takes it without a second thought. If she doesn't like it, Hei-Ran definitely will.

Sofia doesn't have the energy to do anything else that day except sleep. She doesn't even have time to listen to the new CD, she just falls asleep.

Instead of flying back to London, Hei-Ran's parents apparate to their flat and apparate the duo to Kings Cross. She says her goodbye to her father, with tears in her eyes. She hugs him tightly, and he kisses her head. They'll miss each other more than anything, but they'll get through it. They'll get through the tears, and the emotions, they'll get through it all, for Luisa.

As much as Sofia chooses to ignore the fear building up in her throat, it's still there. She punched Draco Malfoy, son of known death eaters, and all-around asshole. She punched him with his goons right there, his daddy and mummy probably knew all about it, how the crimson red liquid drained from his nose, along with the color of his face. They most likely knew all about it, and there was probably a huge hit on her back, because, who wouldn't want to kill the mudblood that punched Draco Malfoy.

Every time there's a rattle on the compartment door, she jumps a little. Hei-Ran notices, how could she not, her best friend is anticipating a painful fist fight. The train ride is almost over, and Sofia's dozing off into a peaceful sleep when the blonde boy shows up.

In one of Sofia's hands is pepper spray, in her hoodie pocket is a taser, in her left hand is her wand. She's prepared. "Well, well, well," He tells the compartment but they're too on edge to listen. "Isn't it our favorite mudblood!" Sofia's on her feet. "I wonder how it's going to be for you, with such a big target on your he-" Sofia's sprayed his eyes with pepper spray. "AHHH," He cries out, his hands over his eyes.

She kicks him down and spits on him.

She sits back in her spot, after locking the compartment door. There's a nervous look on her friends' faces, they relax when she lets out a breathy laugh. "Oh, god," Her laughs tumble out, "Why- Why did I do that," She almost lets the laughs turn to tears. "That was- so, so- stupid."

She won't let herself cry, that's too easy, to let her emotions all out at once. She has to let them build, slowly. One horrible action or slight peeve must build up onto each other. They have to build until they're suffocating her, and even then she won't cry. She won't cry until it's an anniversary of her mamá. Then, the tears can come pouring out of her. Then people won't ask why she's crying, because lots of people will cry over their dead mother, she doesn't need an excuse.

She only allows herself to cry twice a year, maybe three times if she's alone, but that's it. It's painful, but letting the tears flow after months of pain is so fucking worth it.

Sofia has detention for the next two weeks. She's expected it, she did punch someone, and pepper sprays them. There's a thought in the back of her head, that maybe if she were a Gryffindor, she would be getting a few day's worths of detention, and while she knows it's true, she dismisses it. Draco has detention for the next two weeks, as well, luckily, they won't be doing it together.

Sofia notices how Draco's breaths slightly speed up when his father was mentioned. Sofia doesn't feel bad for a second. How could she? He stooped down to blood status, and wether she has sex or not, how pathetic is that? He's just a mean 13-year-old who thinks he has to make fun of others to feel better.

She gets why Harry is so ruthless to him. Even if he deserves love, Sofia believes in the golden rule, even if it's a stupid 6-year-old rule. She thinks he needs to be showed love, but he needs to do one kind thing. She showed him some kindness last year, she helped him with Potions work, she showed him some muggle food, and this is how he treats her? It's bullshit.

He was mean to her, when all she was, was nice to him. She didn't make fun of him, she didn't call him names or say snide things about Slytherins, she was nice to 12-year-old Draco Malfoy when no one else was. He was bitchy to her the next year, why?

The walk back to the feast is spent with awkward silence, and clicking tongues. "Draco, I get the whole 'acting out' thing, you're 13, you have suppressed feelings, but God, bullying me," She snaps, throwing her hands up. "Suppressed feelings?" He looks at her questioningly, "Yes, I mean, being rude to Harry..." She trails off.

"God, no!" He yells at her, his voice is venom. "Well, okay," She looks at him skeptically. She goes to her table, and sits down next to Oni, talking with love. She used to talk to him like that, with bright eyes, rosy cheeks, and excitement pouring out of her. She used to get winded from talking about things she loved, she would psych herself up, and let the words come rushing out of her. He thinks about her words, 'suppressed feelings' maybe she's right, just not about Harry.

Sofia hasn't had band practice since November, so when she gets the reminder on her coin, she rushes. She grabs the miniature drum set, new drum sticks, and waits for Oni in the common room. He comes up to her, with a large smile on his face. His ebony hand is stuck out, patiently waiting for hers to grab it. She does, and the two walk out with large smiles on their faces.

To get to the Room of Requirements, Oni, Sofia, Hei-Ran, and Stan have to walk up 8 flights up stairs. Both common rooms are on the basement floor, so they meet in the middle and walk up together. "So, I got detention for 2 weeks," Sofia starts.

"If Stan or I did that, we'd get like a month of detention, so that's a good ratio, I think," Hei-Ran tells her. "I swear, this prejudice always gets on my fucking nerves, when I'm Headmaster," Stan starts, and Oni rolls his eyes teasingly.

Stan loves talking about his potential future, his biggest goal was to be Headmaster of Hogwarts and change the sorting system. "I saw that eye roll, Oni, don't think I didn't. But, when I become Headmaster, I'm going to end house prejudice. Everyone is going to be sorted every year," Stan starts, and Sofia knows he won't stop.

"It's stupid to think that people's beliefs and ideologies won't change over 7 years, especially when they go through puberty." Sofia throws her arm over Stan and encourages him with a warm smile. She hates it when people ignore what she says, so she'd never do that, especially to her friends.

Orla is waiting patiently, by the Ravenclaw common room when they make it up to the 5th floor. "What's going on?" She asks Hei-Ran, "Stan's going on about his sorting plans," Hei-Ran whispers, cover her mouth with her hand. "Stan, you know what I think?" She tells him.

"Yes, I do Or-," She cuts him off. "I think we should sort people on what their favorite colors are!" Stan rubs his face in his hands, "Oracle, that's so fuc-,"

"No! It's not stupid, what your favorite color is, tells a lot about who you are!" She tells him, a large smile on her face. "Oh, yes, because my favorite color being ice blue, tells so much about my personality!" Stan sticks his tongue out of her. Orla does it back.

"Children! Children!" Hei-Ran yells, walking backward so they could see her face. "We're the children?" Oni asks, his hand pointing towards the group. "You're the one that still sleeps with a stuffed animal and your baby blanket!" Hei-Ran gasps. "Berry is not just a stuffed bear! He's my emoti- Oh, we're here," She laughs.

Once they're inside the room, they all tune their instruments. Sofia shows them her new tool, and they all speculate on who it could be from. Sofia smiles at each attempt, but never says who. "Whoever it is, they're totally in love with you," Hei-Ran tells her, tuning her bass. "Oh yes, totally, they always think about me, no matter what," Sofia muses.

They work on melodies, Sofia hitting her snare drum more often than usual. "Okay so, we need to harmonize," Orla tells Hei-Ran, "You do A flat, I'll do D sharp?" Hei-Ran questions. "No, do G sharp," Orla thinks, after all, she's the one who took music theory over the summer. "I'll do a metronome, so you guys can get it to work. Does 120 work?" Hei-Ran thinks, "110."

Band practice goes like that, figuring out rhythms for they're already written out songs, figuring out harmonies, and who should play what. It's such a nice part of Sofia's day, she doesn't think twice about the fact this practice was 3 hours, and it's already past curfew.

She likes the rush of having to sneak past filch in the hallways, the quiet giggles of her friends trailing behind her. It's exhilarating, the pump of her blood, and the sound of their quiet footsteps on the stone floor is lovely. The hands of her friends being thrown over each other's mouth, and their quiet pants are some of the reasons that keep Sofia going. It's the adrenaline, and the rush, and trust, it's all so beautifully hectic, that Sofia lives for.

Once they go their separate ways, the fun is still there, just toned down. Sure, it's fun running with Oni down the Hogwarts halls, but it's so much easier to hide 2 people than to hide 5. They tap the barrels to the tune of 'Helga Hufflepuff' and enter their common room.

The room is warm, but not hot, just the way Sofia loves it.

Sofia gets the time to listen to 'Pop Smear' and when she does, it's a revelation. It's a little country at the beginning, but as it goes on, the beat speeds up, and the sound unifies, she cries. She listens to the funky beginning of Victoria to the ending guitar riffs of the River. She loves it all, with its little quirks, she runs out of bed.

She sneaks out of the Hufflepuff common room, sneaking through the halls. She can hear her breath as she runs up the stairs, sneaking into broom closets to avoid Filch. Once she makes it to the Ravenclaw common room door, she answers the riddle, says hi to Luna Lovegood who's reading the Quibbler, and walks up to the girl's 5th-year dorm.

"Sofia, whAT!" Hei-Ran whines. "Shh, I found this really good CD, you'll love it," Sofia whispers, sliding into Hei-Ran's bed. She listens to the songs, her best friend taking in the same songs. Sofia watches as Hei-Ran's expressions turn from one of sleep into one of happiness.

"Oh shit, oh shit," Hei-Ran smiles, eyes wide with love and excitement.

"I know right! I found this album at..."

The two best friends fall asleep cuddled together, listening to the same song, with the same loving grins on their faces. 

\--


	19. seventeen- new books and wish fights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which they all have some issues

FOR the most part, Sofia's never known what she wants to do. She's always bounced between a job in her world or the magic one. The opportunity of being a doctor, or even better- a writer, has always been calling her name behind a curtain. The possibility of spending her life writing books, and exploring the world weaves itself into her mind and suffocates her until it's the only thing she can think about. But, then there's the scariness of it all.

Having other people read her prized possessions, the things that she spent months pouring her thoughts out into paper, figuring out plots, characters, love lives, redemption arcs, villains and if there's one, she's scared of people saying they hate it. That it's shit, and that the potential is not lying there in the words she's so carefully picked. Because, sure, her friends love them, but they're her friends, they're not going to say it's crap, they might whisper it with each other, quiet truths mixed in stupidly loud lies.

Then, there's the wizarding world, filled with people she's ever liked, and memories she'll always hate. But, potions, stupid fucking potions that leaves her giddy with excitement, because as much as the professor sucks, she loves the class. She loves the way her hair curls when the potion fumes fly into her face and doesn't frizz like others do. Sofia's addicted to the way ingredients disappear in the potions and the excitement that bubbles in her chest when she gets a potion right.

She loves the potential world of potions, the scavenging for ingredients in the dead of night the moonlight shining down on her. The possibility of spending her life alone in a dungeon scares the fuck out of her, but she's 15 now, she doesn't have to worry about that for another 2 years.

She doesn't know about the tragedies coming her way, she doesn't know about the bite, the tournament, the year after, and everything that comes with it. She doesn't know anything about the future, and she's blissfully ignorant. If only she could stay blissfully ignorant.

All she has to worry about at the moment are her grades, and the upcoming exams, the most stressful ones she's had yet.

January is almost done, and the change between the previous semester and now is obvious. The professors are giving them hell, and they know it. It's like they all come together every week to decide which day they all give an ungodly amount of work.

Sofia barely has enough time to breathe, let alone go to band practice, work on her books, figure out if she and Cedric are dating, hang out with friends, deal with Sirius fucking Black, take care of the Pettigrew problem, write home, and take care of her mental health. She can only do one thing at a time, and out of the countless options, she'll figure out if she and Cedric are together so the pressure will be off her back,

She knows he's not necessarily avoiding her, but it really seems like it. Okay, so maybe he's definitely avoiding her, but she can't for the life of her, figure it out. "Do we have any idea why he's ignoring you?" Orla asks, plopping down on a water-resistant charmed towel, George's hand in hers, Fred on his side.

"No, we have nothing."

"Do you have the sheet?" Sofia asks, her head sitting in her hands. "I do," Orla replies, pulling out a piece of parchment.

(Reasons why Cedric might be avoiding Sofia

By: Orla, Fred, George, Hei-Ran, Stanley, Oni, and occasionally, Sofia

1\. He lost interest in me :( (not likely)

2\. He has other things to worry about

3\. He is working out how to ask Sofia out (very fucking likely)

4\. He needs to work out his feelings

5\. He is working on asking Sofia out on another date and doesn't want to ruin the plan

6\. He's not ready to be in a relationship, and he knows that I want to be, so he's avoiding me so he doesn't ruin whatever we are

7\. Someone who's interested in him told him lies about Sofia so he would stop talking to her, so this someone can get with him )

They all read it together under their breaths, mumbling comments about what might not be true or what is. "Okay, so maybe," Orla starts, pulling out a muggle pen. "We're just over examining this," Sofia watches intently as she writes, 'Cedric is NOT avoiding Sofia, we're just over examining it all!!!!'

"I can get behind that," Fred agrees, smiling smugly. "Well, I can't," Sofia blinks, rubbing her eyebrows, "Cedric hasn't even smiled at me in class, or looked at me, he used to always acknowledge me at least!" She snaps, "Shit, I'm sorry, I'm just..." She apologizes.

"It's okay, we all get it," Hei-Ran rubs her back sympathetically. "Not really, but I'm going to act like I do, mate!" Oni smiles, sending her a thumbs up. "Let's just hope that he comes to my tutoring session because Merlin knows that boy needs it," Sofia smiles, taking out her homework. "Who needs help with homework?"

Everyone nods their head feverishly. And Sofia just rolls her eyes lovingly.

Cedric's never been more exhausted.

Between Quidditch practice, school work, writing home, and working out what to do next with Sofia, he's tired. All he wants to do is listen as Sofia rants about the Roman gods, and the way her voice never trembles or falters, she's always so confident in telling these stories. He knows others have it worse, but they're his problems, he's allowed to be worried about them.

It's so tiring being the golden boy of Hufflepuff, because a, he hates it, and b, living up to expectations is too difficult.

He just needs to shut himself off, take a day to himself, to breathe, to just not be Cedric Diggory, Hufflepuff Quidditch captain, seeker, all-around good person, therapist friend, and prefect. He just wants to be a normal muggle boy, so he goes to the only person that can teach him to be a normal muggle boy for the day, Sofia.

Cedric grabs Alexandre by the arm and drags him outside to the hallway. "What's up, Diggory?" Alex twirls his rings, "We're gonna be muggles on Sunday!" His voice is filled with excitement, he hopes it masks the exhaustion. "What? Cedric?" Alexandre stops playing with his rings and looks up. "I haven't figured everything out yet, but, all I have to do is ask Sofia-"

"Ask Sofia, the girl who asked me why you were ignoring her, for a favor?"

"Not a favor, she'll come with us! Wait- She asked you why I was ignoring her? You didn't tell her I was planning a date and I didn't want to blab, did you? Oh god, if you did I have to replan the date! Alex!" He cries out, moving his fist in the air. "We had such a great date last time! I loved that movie, granted it was a little sad, but-"

"CEDRIC!" Alexandre grabs his shoulders and shakes him vigorously. "I didn't tell her, honest," Cedric visibly calms down. "Don't you have a tutoring session with her tomorrow?" Cedric nods. "Well, perfect! You ask her then, and how about I sit at a table close enough where I can hear you guys, but not close enough for it to be obvious," Alexandre offers.

"Well, that works, I mean if things go sour, just come and rescue me, alright?" Cedric's voice is questioning, he's just really hoping to leave the prying eyes of Hogwarts. "Let's go," Alex wraps his arm around Cedric, and the two walk back inside the common room, Cedric's eyes dart around the room, looking for the curly-haired girl he's grown accustomed too over the past semester.

He sees her, a black shaggy dog is laying his head on her crisscrossed legs, she and Oni are whispering to themselves, eyebrows furrowed. He catches the whispers, quiet muffles in the boisterous yellow room, filled with liveliness and love. "You think I know, you were the one too-" Is all he catches before he goes back into the room.

"Well, I know I took him in, who do you think I thought was sitting on my lap?" Sofia whispers, pointing to a sleeping Padfoot. "We can't talk to Sirius, maybe we should deal with Peter Pettigrew?" Oni questions, playing at his overalls. "No, I think we should at least try to talk to Harry, it's his godfather, and parent murderer after all."

Oni laughs, "What's so funny?" Sofia's ready to laugh, she needs the relief. "I just thought of the Godfather movies, maybe Sirius is apart of the Mafia or something incredibly stupid like that!" Sofia giggles, she looks for the analog clock, she asks Oni, "Is the big hand the hour or the minutes?"

"Minute, yeah, minute!" After learning this information, she reads the clock, 6:53. "I'm going to write, and then go to sleep, I'm done for the day, can we talk about this tomorrow?" Oni nods, "Good night, Sofe, get some sleep, you deserve it," Sofia doesn't know what he means by the 'you deserve it' bit, but, she'll take it.

When she makes it to her bed, she slips off her clothes and changes into her pajamas. Her notebooks (one for character analysis, and plot points, and another for her actual book), pens, pencils, and a binder for stability are on her bed waiting for her. Sofia opens up her 'Sofia's characters!' and adds onto the character points of her new book, one she's yet to start.

Afterward, she starts writing.

She goes to sleep with one chapter done, 2 hours later. She starts reading her work.

"1 YEAR AFTER- June 18th, 1992

'Today is the one year anniversary of the capture of the Mountain River Terror, the police department is holding a candlelight vigil to remember those taken by the brutal murderer. The vigil will begin at 8 pm, in front of the Wilteron Police Department.'

CHAPTER ONE

'If you're reading this, I'm either dead, in police custody, on the run, or some combination of the three,' The detective shut the notebook, fingers quivering. She can't believe she's about to do this, about to go through her things. Detective Piliantoso knows she has to, for the victims, for the families, for herself, but the potential words terror her mind. They leave the residue of brutally stabbed victims, and tapes of old men crying for the pain to stop. There could be so much said in the unsaid, in the words that she'll never read, with the red ink spread across lined crisp white paper written in urgency.

The deep breath of the detective disrupts the room. The calmness that Piliantoso's questioning never existed is no longer there. The potential words mix in the air, fluttering around the baby blue comforter, pushing the photos filled with bright smiles, and loving eyes into a place where they'll never be thought of again. The notebook's open again, and while the Detective knows she'll close the book again, she wants to get through the first entry now.

'Everyone expected me to go off the rails, it's in my genetics, but never this soon, never when I'm 16 and supposed to be 'Wilteron's golden girl'. It was supposed to happen when I'm 40, with a steady job, a wife, and a child, I was supposed to hide it behind late nights, and the stress of my job. But, alas (god that sounds so fucking pretentious) that's not what happened. What happened is I murdered 15 people (the police only found 9 so suck on that!) and got caught, so I think that's what we should talk about instead of the what if's because what if's can suck my ass.'

The detective's never been more scared."

Sofia's eyes flutter shut, her neck in an uncomfortable position, she's too exhausted to care.

Waking up has always been a hard part of Sofia's day, she likes mornings, but leaving her bed is difficult sometimes. But, today, she wakes up with a start, eager to eat breakfast, write some more for her book, and finally get to talk to Cedric.

Her blood pumps in her veins as she gets dressed, putting on black tights under her black skirt, her white button-up school shirt, her school v neck, her yellow tie with pins on it, and her robes. It's not exactly fashionable, to her taste, but at least she doesn't have to worry about her outfit. She rolls her skirt up, looking for her platform mary janes, a fashion trend that's rising back home.

She accessorizes like crazy, with hair clips, makeup trends, rings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, anklets. If she can't make her outfit less bland, she'll accessorize as she pleases. After eating and writing at breakfast, constantly blowing her bangs out of her face, she hasn't had time to trim them, she goes to classes.

She tunes out Professor Mconnagalls every class 'OWL's are coming up, study!' Speech does her work, turns in her homework, making sure it's for this class and walks out. "How's the writing going?" Stan asks, joining her in walking to potions. She looks at him with confusion, "Oni told me." The grin that plays at Stan's lips off puts Sofia, whenever they talk about Oni, Stan gets this grin, so large, so happy, so him, but now it's only half.

"I've written 2 full chapters, some parts I can use later in it, and the ending, you all can read it when I'm tutoring Cedric," Stan notices the grimace Sofia tries to hide at Cedric's name, he chooses to ignore it. "So, tell me, what's the synopsis of this book," It's enough to get Sofia started.

Cedric's 15 minutes late, this hasn't happened before. Sofia's not even mad, just disappointed. She's been rejected before, relationships have crumbled under her, she's been stood up, but not by anyone like Cedric. She's done with her 9-inch Potions essay when he finally comes.

His hair is messy, his cheeks are red, and his Cedric Diggory grin is shining down on Sofia, she smiles at him, she can't help it.

"Sorry, I was uh," He looks for the words that'll get him out of this mess.

"It's okay," Sofia knows it's not, but the sooner she can go cry in Hei-Ran's arms, the better.

They do their work, Sofia explaining it to him, him nodding, the scratch of his quill masking the clicks of her pen. When the session is over, no words have been shared over what they are, she's come to terms with it, he's desperate to ask her out on a date.

"Sofia," The urgency in his voice makes Sofia lookup. "Yeah?"

"So, Alex and I want to go to Scotland for the day this Saturday, and you're the only person that knows how to survive in the muggle world, can you take us?" Sofia deflates, it wasn't what she wanted, but it's a hangout nonetheless. "I don't speak Scottish, sorry," She wants him to fight for her, so she can know if he still likes her or not.

"Oh, well," The disappointment is evident on his face. "Yeah, uh, Stanley does, so..." It's so awkward at this point that Alexandre is cringing. "Cool, thanks," She gets up.

"What the fuck was that?" Alex whispers to Cedric, his tone harsh. "Well, she said she didn't speak Scottish, so!" Alex hits the back of his head. "That was a test you idiot, to see if you would fight but not really fight for her!" Cedric's eyes widen, in what, neither of the boys knows. "So-" She's gone.

As she walks, she lets the tears build up in her eyes, she doesn't care if she might be reading it wrong, or she's just looking for problems. He didn't fight. It is what it is at this point.


	20. eighteen- quidditch fights and lunch dilemmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which there is a big problem

QUIDDITCH matches have never really been Sofia's thing, it's more of an 'I'll tag along because my friends want to go' kind of thing. But, when Hufflepuff is playing Ravenclaw, she has to go all out. It's a battle between the 2 forgotten houses, and on those one days, neither house is forgotten. Sofia knows that Gryffindor will win the house cup, it's favoritism and everyone knows it, except maybe the Gryffindors themselves but that's something else.

Most of the Gryffindors either don't go (meanies!) or are a Hufflepuff kind of house. Slytherins show up to either boo both teams, or support either team, normally Ravenclaw. But. Sofia's done with people not really showing up to their games, so she makes a bunch of signs. She hangs them everywhere, in the most annoying places, just to get people excited for the game to happen so the posters could go away.

If someone were to rip the poster down, a new one would be replaced, it would say 'As a whole, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws have enough embarrassing anecdotes for all of you! If you don't go to the game, some of these stories might be shared! See you there xoxo!' It's intimidating enough for people to listen, but not for them to report it. Sofia knows people will come now, who the majority of the school will root for? It's unknown, but Sofia doesn't really care.

Okay, so maybe that's a lie. She knows that if a lot of people root for Hufflepuff, Cedric will be excited, and they'll most likely win. If they win, there's a chance, a tiny one, that he might come up and kiss Sofia. She knows it's a small chance, and when Hei-Ran heard it, she laughed a little, and then said "Sofia, hun." There's a good chance Hufflepuff will win, Oni normally goes to watch the practices, and he's been telling the group (it's more directed towards Sofia and everyone knows it) how good they've been getting.

Orla Rasherton, someone who cursed off sports in 1st year, is now interested in playing. She's interested in playing seeker, which isn't the most athletic part of the team, but still, it's a part of the sport. Worst of all, she wants Sofia to be the commentator next year. Sirius once told her a story of Remus commentating the Quidditch game, he cursed so much, he wasn't allowed to be a commentator again. Sofia's just scared that that'll happen to her.

Oni and Sofia are always for Hufflepuff, Orla and Hei-Ran are normally for Ravenclaw, Stan's always the wild card. "Wear the yellow!" Oni insists, throwing the yellow cardigan at him. Stan can't catch for shit, so the sweater falls to the floor. "No! Oh, my lovely Stan, where the blue!" Orla says theatrically. "Stan the man, the yellow will look great on you! Wear the yellow or else-" Sofia pauses, trying to think of something embarrassing to use as blackmail, "Or else, I'll tell your family your vegan! Imagine how your mama will react to that!"

Stan rolls his eyes, picks up the yellow sweater, and puts it on. "Hey! That's no fair!" Orla tells Sofia, in a wave of joking anger. "All is fair, in love and war, Rasherton," Oni smirks, taking a bag of snacks and heading to the Quidditch Pitch. "Say, Oni, have you had a vision of who's going to win this very high stakes game?" Sofia makes a fist and points it towards Oni, pretending to be a newscaster.

"Well, I'd see the vision givers are still out on that one, but I have heard- oh, shit it's cold." It's true, the late January air pinches at their skin. Sofia conjures a peacoat and places it gently on her shivering body. Oni conjures a hat and places the knitted object on his head. "Ready to go watch Hufflepuff destroy Ravenclaw?"

"As if I ever wasn't," Sofia smiles, and takes him to the stands, just as the game is about to start. "WELCOME TO THE HUFFLEPUFF V RAVENCLAW GAME, I AM YOUR COMMENTATOR LEE JORDAN, SO GET PREPARED FOR A VERY EVENTFUL GAME!"

"I have a feeling that something really crazy is going to happen in this game," Sofia smiles, looking around, waiting for when the teams walk out. "FIRST UP, WE HAVE THE HUFFLEPUFF TEAM..." Lee announces, and the team walks out. As Cedric's name is announced, girls cheer loudly, and Oni laughs. Sofia doesn't question it.

A weird thing does happen, the Ravenclaw Keeper and one of the Hufflepuff Beaters got into a fistfight. It was a miscommunication, a wrong tally on the scoreboard. But, how a beater and a keeper neither the team captain, got into a fight was beyond Sofia. "See, I told you, something crazy was going to happen, it just happened to be a fistfight!" The entire school watches as the Hufflepuff beats the Ravenclaw in the fight.

"FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!"

As she screams along with the rest of the crowd a cocky smile makes its way to Sofia's face. It makes her look alive, it's the kind of alive that hasn't graced her features since before break. Hell, before her mother died. Oni doesn't know why a fistfight in the middle of a cold Quidditch game can spark one of those joyful, safe smiles. It seems so incredibly stupid, but Oni knows it has some inner meaning that Hei-Ran will probably get to know.

The teachers pull the students off of each other, Madam Pomfrey performs a spell, and the games go on. The fight and the adrenaline of it is over, the smile that warms Sofia's face, is still there. She turns to smile at Orla across the way. Hei-Ran looks highly amused and is sipping on her frozen butterbeer (she only drinks cold drinks), Orla is moving her hands dramatically, acting like she's been wounded.

Orla makes eye contact with Sofia, she sticks out her tongue, and Sofia just winks at one of her best friends as Cedric Diggory catches the golden snitch. The wave of cheers from the Hufflepuff supporters makes up for the bitter cold nipping at the group's skin. "WOOO! GO HUFFLEPUFF!" Sofia calls out, waiting to see if Cedric comes running towards her.

He does.

He throws his arms around her, his signature scent of pine and vanilla flood her senses. It's been a few weeks since she's smelled it, it's warm, and the scent brings the warm smile her friends have known for 5 years back. "Let me take you out for a date Sunday," He whispers in her ear.

"I'll be ready," A glint of excitement floats in her eyes.

Saturday's have never been Sofia's kind of day. When she was a child and visiting Los Angeles, California over the summer, a 115-degree heatwave happened on a Saturday. Her mother died on a Saturday, her dog died on a Saturday, she broke her leg on a Saturday. Everything remotely bad tends to happen to her on a Saturday. For some reason, this Saturday went really well.

She had been able to take a walk around the castle, admiring the fact that the sun was out. It kissed her skin and warmed up her very frozen fingers. The sunlight pushed through the dark forest leaves, making the trees shake in gratitude, the plant life drank it up, thankful for a little bit of relief from the harsh winter. After all, what couldn't the sunlight and it's incomprehensible beauty fix? Apparently Draco Malfoy and his thoughts that he should get everything he wants.

It happened before Sofia even realized it. Draco Malfoy, someone she used to trust is standing, right there, next to her. "Yeah?" She looks at him, the sunlight directly covering her face. Her skin shimmers in the light. "I was wondering- well not wondering, but," He stammers over his words, smiling meekly. "Would you want to go to Hogsmeade with me?" Sofia's eyes widen, she opens her mouth, "I'm sorry but no! I'm not interested, especially after how you treated me, Malfoy!"

The girl in front of him is not the Sofia he knew, the fire in her eyes is bright, not timid waiting to be lit. She's not hiding behind the unsaid words, but protecting the ones she's said. "Fine! I didn't want to go out with you anyway!" Sofia just laughs at him, "Sure, okay!"

Sofia's excited to go to lunch that afternoon, but when she sees the banner hanging up on the ceiling, her smile drops. Now, she knows that running away because of the 'SOFIA CHESTLEY IS A SLAG!' is wrong, but God is it tempting. She was going to need to contact Nemesis, because what the hell? Who the hell would call another girl a slag (her father's taught her that men rarely call girls slags in big gestures like this)? What did she do to deserve this? To be humiliated like this.

Marietta Edgecomb is looking particularly smug, Draco Malfoy is looking happy as well, and Cho Chang is talking to Marietta angrily. When Sofia's friends walk in, they stop talking happily and look at the great hall in horror. Hei-Ran rushes to Sofia's side, "What the hell is this about?" Sofia looks appalled. "You think I know? I'm the one being called a whore!" She stabs at her mac and cheese angrily.

The rest of her friend group sit next to her, they discuss it for a few moments.

"Who did it?"

"I think Marrietta Edgecomb, she really fancies Cedric!"

"Draco Malfoy asked me out, and I kind of said no, so that might have something to do with this!"

"That little fucking rat!"

"How are we going to get back at them?"

"We won't!"

"We need to take it down, right now!"

They try to, but it just replaces itself in the air. The smirk grows on Draco's and Marietta's faces. "I swear to God, I'll kill them!" Orla says angrily. "Me too, I'll do it now, no hesitance!" Stanley murmurs, while hexing Marietta, pimples grow on her face. Oni hexes Draco, bats flow out of his nose. "What the fuck?!"Marietta explodes, to see Stanley smirking. "You, you bitch! I'll get you, watch your back!"

Draco just rolls his eyes and mutters a removal spell.

"Watch my back? Marietta please," Stan rolls his eyes. That was the end of the conversation, seeing as Sofia was so red from being embarrassed. The group talked about music, Sofia's dog, school drama, the game, Sofia's upcoming date, George and Orla's relationship, and its troubles, anything really. The teachers tried their best to take the sign down, but Dumbledore wasn't really trying, so nothing was happening to the banner.

When Cedric walks into the Great hall, Alexandre and his friends by his side, he stops. Anger contorts itself onto his and Alexandre's face. "WHO DID THIS?" Cedric calls out, and Sofia sinks into her seat, oh lord, this will be terribly embarrassing. He'll make a fuss out of something that most people glance at and then just ignore, or try to take it down but fail. When no one responds, he calls out again, "WHO DID THIS?"

"Mr. Diggory, please sit down! We are assessing that matter at the moment!" Dumbledore almost yells, but because he's Dumbledore he doesn't yell. Cedric just rolls his eyes and plops himself down right beside their group. "So, who did this?" He whispers sharply, and Oni almost laughs, he had just embarrassed his friend deeply. "Draco and Marietta but I'm sure the professors already know, so we're just going to leave it at that," Hei-Ran states, but it's not true.

The group will hex them for months, and will always find some small way to hurt them. They won't let it go for a second, they're just trying to calm Cedric down. "Those bitches," He curses, "So, what are we going to do about it?"

"Nothing, we're going to sit back, and watch it, as people try to take it down, fail, and then leave it be. We're going to act like it didn't fucking happen, so these bitches don't get satisfaction!" Orla snaps, smiling at George and Fred as they walk over to them. "Should we talk about it, or?" George whispers to Orla, "We're not going to," She whispers back. He just nods and relays the information to Fred.

Cedric doesn't seem content with the answer so he walks towards Draco. Sofia's not even that upset at this point, she just wants Cedric to stop. "Cedric, what the fuck?" She asks him as he comes back from being mean to Draco. "What? I'm not going to sit here and act like what they said is okay, you might be okay with it, but I'm not!" He tells her sharply. "I'm not okay with it either! I can talk to them myself about it! I appreciate the help, Cedric, but I can deal with things on my own!"

"I never said you didn't!"

"I know, but your actions did kind of ramble on to me about that!"

The fight leaves the table with tension. When Oni speaks up, lunch finishes. Sofia leaves to go to her dorm room. As she walks by, Marietta walks by smoothly, "Slag," Sofia trips her, and disappears into the Hufflepuff common room, after she's heard the crunch of her nose hitting the ground.

At least she'll have one good memory before she goes home to ignore the conflict.


	21. nineteen- train rides and stupid shows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she goes home

SOFIA really enjoys being at home. But, the trip back there, isn't really ideal. She has to catch a 7-hour bus to London, with her chunky portable phone, by herself. She spends her time reading, and writing, blinking back the tears because she impulsively left Hogwarts. She smiles at the young woman next to her, she has traditionally goth makeup and clothes, and it makes Sofia feel safe. There's something that makes her smile about the black ring left on her straw, and the blocky eyeliner that covers her entire eyelid.

After a few quick glances, the woman sits next to her, "Hey, I'm Berlin," The woman sticks out her hand. "I'm Sofia," Berlin's hand is rough, her fingertips are calloused, she must be a guitar player. "Oh, are you Spanish?" Sofia smiles, but inwardly almost cringes, everyone always notices her accent, not her smiley piercing, or her now bright green streaks in her hair. "I am, born and raised," Sofia smiles awkwardly. "So, what's a girl like you," Berlin takes in her magenta ankle-length skirt and a black tank top with a white knitted shirt under it. She looks straight out of a Delia's catalog. "Doing on a train coming from the middle of nowhere in Scotland?"

"Drama at school, I decided to book it home, my dad won't mind," Sofia fiddles with her rings. "What about your school policy?" Berlin's considerate, she doesn't ask about her mum. "Our what's the word, um, not professor, uh," Sofia snaps her fingers. Merlin, she can create a world in her mind, but she can't remember the name of who owns her school. "Headmaster?"

Sofia's face lights up, "Yes, that's the word! But, um, our headmaster wouldn't mind, I'll just talk to him, make up an excuse." Sofia hopes that Berlin will ask why she's leaving, so Sofia can vent and talk with someone who doesn't know the world of magic, but Berlin's not a mind reader (well about that) so Sofia just smiles. "What made you leave?"

"So there was this girl that decided to make a poster and call me a whore." Sofia's eyes aren't red from crying, there's no pain in them, just amusement, she's excited to tell the story. "No way! Why?"

"So, there's this guy, I kinda have a thing with, we went on two dates, we kissed, but then he ignored me. So, my friends and I lost it. We created this list of reasons why he might be avoiding us." Berlin smiles fondly at the word 'us', the girl she's just met has such a close group, they either thought if he was avoiding Sofia, he was practically avoiding all of them, or they were so close they were constantly with each other.

"But, I have to tutor him in shop class, because he was horrible at it. He was like 20 something minutes late, and he barely talked to me. He wanted to leave school Saturday or Sunday, and he wanted me to come. But, I don't speak Scottish, but it was a test, you get me?"

"To see if he would fight or go for you?"

"Yes! He didn't. But, then we had a soccer game, and he asked me out, I said yes. Everything was good until the slut thing happened. There's this guy who's 2 years younger than me, I'm 13, he's 15. He asked me out on a date, and I said no, obviously. But, he did one of those mean guy things where he pretends he never wanted to go out with me."

"Oh, gross, he's one of those jerks?"

"Yeah, and he said some racist comments about me, and expected me to just go out with him, it was horrible," Sofia's horrible sounds like 'or-eeb-leh' and it almost makes Berlin laugh. "There's this girl named Marietta Edgecomb, she had a thing for Cedric, that's the guy I fancy," Berlin laughs at the name.

"His name is Cedric?" Sofia nods, "Oh, Lord, that's a funny name," Sofia giggles a bit, "I guess it is. His name is actually Cedric Diggory," Sofia's brown eyes roll around her head, cheeks red from smiling. Berlin notes that she looks purely happy. Without any thoughts her back, or scars along her body that make her cry, or any negative energy. Her smile is more than bright, it shines but brighter than words. The smile lines don't make her look old but alive, and whole.

"Cedric Diggory, my my my, what um, a lovely name," Sarcasm clings onto her words, the words mix into the air, flowing down the train, making themselves home in the elderly couples ears, making the group of teenagers skiving off school laugh, and making the young newborn cry. "I always call him by uh funny nicknames, for example, Dig, or Diggy, it's fun.

"So, I get to lunch, and there's this poster saying, 'Sofia Chestley is a slag!' and I just ignore it. The teachers try to take it down, other students try to take it down, but it's just stuck. My friends and I don't care really, but then Cedric comes in."

"Oh, shit is about to get real," Berlin takes a dramatic sip from her cup of coca-cola.

"He gets all angry, and defensive like he didn't just ignore me for a week and a half. Lunch goes on, and then I tripped the girl, I think she broke her nose. But, she had it coming honestly."

"Oh, honestly," Berlin agrees, drinking in the drama. Her life working at the ministry is quite boring. There's not much office drama, and when Berlin was at school, she adored the drama, the gossip, whispering things into your best friend's ear, and passing notes with words of who slept with who. Drama was Berlin's favorite thing, it still is now. It's addictive, and while she knows it's bad, she doesn't care.

She'll throw all caution in the win if it means she finds out that Fletcher's wife cheated on him with Florean Fortescue. She loves the adrenaline, and the energy it gives her. It's this perfect world of gasping and looking dumbfounded when you've had a suspicious all along. There's just something about writing it all in your diary, and looking back at it, and remembering how it was to live it.

As much as she acknowledges the fact gossip sucks when you're the main character in the tale of horrible teenagers, Berlin doesn't fucking care.

"I just don't get why she would call me a slag. There was really no point in it because I wasn't really affected by it," Sofia lies. "Then why are you going home?" Berlin calls her out. "Well-" Sofia pauses, eyes wide. "Yeah, listen, it's okay to be affected by it, I would be too. But, it's not okay to keep it in, you gotta let it out sometime."

"I understand that I do, it's just I have a habit of bottling it up, so whenever I cry, it feels better." Berlin smiles solemnly, she understands it. "Well, Sofia Chestley, the slag," The two laugh, "Tell me about yourself."

Berlin learns that Sofia's born on February 14th (It made Berlin trust the universe a little more), Sofia goes to a boarding school, her favorite book is Little Women, she writes passionately, she hates her boarding school and the world that it comes with, she loves music, and she's in a band. Overall, she's interesting, and there's just something nice about her that Berlin quite can't place.

When the train comes to a stop, the two smile at each other, and leave. There's no goodbye's, or 'I'm glad I met you!' there's just an empty silence and a small head nod of agreeance. They'll forever be strangers after this, but the 5 hours will always live in their minds.

The 2-hour flight makes Sofia happy. She listens to music, and plots out a new character in her book, Alise, she's a direct dedication to Berlin, she hopes that one day, if she were to publish her books, Berlin would read them, and notice herself in the characters. Sofia's excited to be home, she's excited to eat food from home and watch rugrats as the children next door play.

She's home by 6 pm. Her father isn't home, and Rugrats is about to start, so she microwaves some popcorn, grabs a sprite from the fridge, and sits on her bed. She's glad Rugrats is on, she doesn't know what she would've watched if it weren't on. It's a stupid show, with a stupid plot, but she loves it, she loves the show so much.

When she hears her father's keys rattle on as he opens the door, she's already in tears. He hears the TV, and sees the wrappers in the trash can, he knows somethings wrong. "Sofia?" He calls out, "Aqui!" Her voice is rough and tired. Romeo's heart drops, Sofia's been crying.

"Que paso?" He asks, while walking into her room. "Drama escolar. Alguien me llamó puta y no pude soportarlo, bueno, lo hice, pero luego me fui. No podía soportar estar ahí. Los profesores intentaron quitarlo, pero no pudieron, ¡y no sé por qué me pasó a mí! Estaba siendo amable, siempre soy amable, pero Cedric me ignoraba, y luego me invitó a salir y le dije que sí. Pero entonces, Draco, el rubio del que te hablé me invitó a salir, ¡obviamente dije que no! Pero, ese día, el letrero apareció en el almuerzo y no me importó, pero Cedric sí. Y papi, no sé por qué lloro."

"Shh, shh, esta bien, esta bien," He whispers, smoothing back her hair, and blowing cool air onto her forehead. It makes Sofia sob even more, because lord, has she missed home. She's too tired to be poetic, and make any sense, so she just utters words of hatred and sadness. He soothes her down, trying his best to make her feel safe.

"¿Tienes exámenes mañana o martes?" She nods her head no, "De acuerdo, enviará una carta a su director diciéndole que volverá a la escuela el miércoles. Pasaremos los próximos dos días explorando, actuando como turistas, lo solucionaremos." She agrees, it sounds nice. She'll get to spend her time with her father, her favorite person. She'll ask that Professor Sprout to come and apparate her home.

'Dear Professor Dumbledore,

I decided to go home after the event incident yesterday, I will return Wednesday, I hope that is not an issue. I request that Professor Sprout arrives at my apartment and she will apparate me back to school.

Sincerely, Sofia Chestley.'

It's short and it gets to the point. She doesn't have an owl, so she just lets it sit on her table, an owl arrives moments later. She rips the letter open, it's from Dumbledore.

'Dear Ms. Chestley,

You may return Wednesday, after the incident, I would expect no less than you would want to go home. Professor Sprout will arrive at 8:30 in the morning and will apparate you to the castle.

Sincerely, Professor Dumbledore.'

It's almost the exact same letter Sofia was about to send to Dumbledore. Sofia just shows the letter to her father and walks back to the room. She puts a DVD into the player, and watches as the play screen for Heathers pops up. She smiles warmly, oddly enough, it's home in a movie.

It's Orla's favorite movie, the one she'll watch over and over, and will never stop loving it. It's Hei-Ran's jokes about explosions and death, that are always obscure and followed by stifled laughter. It's Oni's giggles about how unconventional the movie is, and how he'd love to experience a high school life like that, without all the death of course. It's Stanley's snide comments about how society is so fucked, and constant blabbering about JD. It's Sofia's connection to the world she'll always love more than the other.

It was the first movie she watched in a cinema after her first year of Hogwarts. It was the first movie she saw in English. It was the first movie her mother had wanted to see again and again and again. It was the first movie Hei-Ran and Oni ever saw. It was the first thing she really obsessed over. It didn't open up a world but brought it to light. It made Sofia love her world so much. The moving pictures were her favorite thing, and living a school year without them hurt.

Heathers lead to the other classic rom coms of the '80s and '70s. They lead to love, and smiles, but never heartache or pain. Heathers was a world of death, and explosion, and chaos, but it could end the second she turned off the screen. Not the wizarding world, that would never end until either Harry Potter or Voldemort died. It'll be one horrific life of death, loss, corruption, tears, anger, and maybe if you're lucky, there'll be some love slipped in.

But, Sofia's not lucky, she's a muggle-born woman of color. She openly prefers the world of no magic, and she's harboring a fugitive. It won't work out for her, not even if she tries her hardest. She'll more than likely end up dead, or by herself with corpse's surrounding her. It won't be a happy ending, but she can focus on the ending of the movie filled with love, drama, anger, and death, all the things a teenage girl can want when a world she lives in is about to be at war.

It's not perfect, but it's a start.


	22. twenty- panic hangups and breakfast foods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she meets a guy

THERE'S a reason that Sofia loves being home so much. It's warm and perfect. The apartment is free of painful memories of her mama, and the life that could've been. It has memories of pillow fights, sleepovers, Christmas parties, birthday's, tears, it's filled with what a home should be like. Sofia knows that forgetting or at least choosing not to remember her mother is shitty. But, this is her only healthy way of coping, she'll forget about ice skating and sleeping on her shoulder for a few hours, and when she wants to, she'll remember. She doesn't dare think about how her mother wasn't there to fawn over her quince dress or tease her because Stanley, her chamberlain couldn't dance for shit.

She doesn't have time, not with OWLS coming up, not with Sirius Black, not with her friend's drama, not with the werewolf issue (she hasn't forgotten Oni's vision from like September). It's all so heavy, and Sofia's always hated heavy. She prefers light and airy with large smiles and quiet giggles. She doesn't want to think about the future, the life she'll live without a mother, for another 70, 80 years (well) it's horrifying. Sofia will have to go to Professor Sprout or her friend's mothers, as much as Mrs. Hei-Ran is a great mother, the two families are from different cultures, it would be too difficult.

Sofia and Elizabeth, a friend go ice skating while Sofia's father prepares to make tamales because he got the baby in his piece of Rosca. They twirl and spin, they rush past couples and kids, laughing and smiling. Their fingers freeze and their cheeks go numb, but it's fine. Elizabeth suggests they go get hot chocolate, Sofia pays for both of them. They sit down on a bench, after wiping it to make sure it's clean. There's a group of boys sitting on a bench across the sidewalk. Sofia notices them and looks at Elizabeth, directly facing her. 

"¿Cuál es la tuya?"Elizabeth looks confused. "¿Qué quieres decir?" Sofia laughs, "Hay un grupo de chicos al otro lado del camino, no mires. Solo busca algo en tu bolso y echa un vistazo," Sofia muses, she's a pro at this. "Ooh, está bien," She does it, the 4 boys are handsome, with their chiseled faces and handsome smiles. "El de la izquierda," Elizabeth giggles, fixing the way she sits. 

The boy on the left has round glasses and blonde hair, his outfit is cute, and he's pretty while handsome. "Oh, está bien, ve Elizabeth. Creo que el del medio está particularmente interesado en mí," The brunette with floppy hair has rarely taken his eyes off of her. "Oh, absolutamente," Elizabeth just rolls her eyes and snorts. She gasps, and Sofia laughs. It's not a quaint little giggle, but one that makes her cover her nose with the back of her hand, a thing she's been doing for ages. 

She shakes her head, and goes to sip her hot chocolate but find out it's empty. "¿La tuya también está vacía?" Elizabeth asks and Sofia nods. "Este es el plan, el bote de basura más cercano está allí," Her head points discreetly to the trashcan near the boys, "Tiraremos nuestra mierda, sonreiremos a los chicos y nos marcharemos, hablemos de In Utero."

"¿En el útero? Gross, Nevermind fue mucho mejor," She stands up and Elizabeth follows, "¡Solo te gusta por Smells Like Teen Spirit!"Elizabeth's voice raises as they become closer to the boys. "Absolutamente no, aunque Smells Like Teen Spirit y Come as You Are son buenas canciones, simplemente ponen crack en Drain Me," Elizabeth rolls her eyes, "Pusieron grieta recta en la totalidad de In Utero," Their cups land in the trashcan with a soft sound, they smile at the boys and walk off. "¿Por qué no funcionó el plan?" Sofia questions.

"Espéralo" She whispers. "Wait!" An English accent startles them. "See," Elizabeth and Sofia turn around. Elizabeth fixes her skirt, and Sofia plays with her hair. "Yes?" The boy Elizabeth knew was into Sofia opens his mouth, "Could I, um, get your number?" Sofia puckers her lips, there is a phone in Hogsmeade, and her chunky portable phone needs a little tweaking but it will work. "Do they let you have a phone at your proper boarding school?"

Before Sofia answers, the boy interrupts, "Where do you go to boarding school?" Sofia bites her cheek before answering, "Middle of nowhere in Scotland," The boy smiles, "Like Dead Poets Society?" Sofia smiles brightly, and the boy almost swoons. "A little more Keating and a little less suicide. But, isn't that set in New England?" The boy's too into her to care that she just corrected him. "My number is uh, 34-931-2225, I have to get home, my papa wants me to help make tamales," She walks away, "The names Sofia. Call me," She hopes she had made an impression.

When she gets home there's a note on the table, 'Out to get things at the store!' She heads into her bedroom and pulls out her pajamas from under her pillow. Sofia is about to go into the living room to watch TV when her personal phone rings. "Hello?" She asks, but she already knows who it is, "Is this Sofia?" His English accent sets her off for a second, but she recuperates. "Yeah, is this the Dead Poets boy?" His laugh is hoarse and nothing like Cedric's.

Her heart drops, Cedric, oh God, what is she doing. "It, it is, the names Charlie," Sofia panics a little, "Nice to meet you, Charlie, I uh, I know we've been on the phone for a second but, I gotta go, I'm sorry," She hangs up, and just sits on her bed. She'll tell Hei-Ran all about this the second she gets back to school. "Oh fuck, how could I do that?" She panics, closing her eyes, please don't cry, please don't cry, she thinks. 

She goes into the restroom, splashes water on her face, and starts writing in her book. She tries her best to make it relatable, to make it understandable, because what good book isn't? She writes and writes and writes, it's like a diary, it can be a diary. Her hands start to cramp but she doesn't care, she needs to get it out. Her father comes home 30 minutes later, and she's already written 30 pages. Nothing will ever quite live up to writing in her book.

The following day is better, she spends it reading and writing in her favorite spot, cooking with her dad, drinking hot chocolate, and watching the rain. It's almost peaceful, almost.

The burning thoughts in her head, because she had given out her number to a guy. A random guy, a guy she didn't even know the name of, all she really knew was that he was built like a Greek god and had a smile that Sofia if she wanted too could write poems about. But, Cedric- Cedric had a smile worth hundreds of poems and was built by the Roman Gods, he was carved by their skillful and delicate hands. Everything was precise about him, from his dimples to the little mole hidden on the inside of his ring finger.

Sofia curses herself for not remembering his laughter, and the fact he chewed on his lip whenever he played Quidditch, and when he talked about something exciting, he would run his fingers through his hair or grab Sofia's hands and talk with them, never failing to wave them around. It's such a small thing, but it was key in making Sofia pay more attention to him.

When she had met him, there were small wings in the bottom of her stomach, just small things that she could bury with her summer fling and the pretty people walking in the halls. She could easily distract herself from the crush that was slowly building in her heart. But as time went on, and the small smiles and tales of Roman Gods became more common, so did the butterflies. It wasn't just seeing him that caused the butterflies, it was the thought of him. That's when she knew she was in deep.

She got all dressed up (as much as you could when you had a uniform) every day she had classes with him, with pretty makeup and beautiful yet simplistic jewelry. She wore the best most fresh clothes in hopes of catching his attention, but it seems whenever she was a mess, he's there, to rub small circles in her back and listen as she rants on about Cupid or Apollo and their odd tales of life. She knew if it was meant to be, it would happen, and luckily enough it did.

Then he ignored her, for lord knows what reason. Looking back on it now, reacting the way she did was okay. He ignored her, for no reason, and she was polite, so very polite. He asked her for a favor, and while she declined, she did set him up. Then, he asked her out, with his fluffy messy hair, and classic Cedric Diggory grin, and everything was okay again. It was good with smiles and conversations at meals. The incident happened and they had their indifferences, and she just ran. She ran like she always did with her emotions.

So, as she's falling asleep, these thoughts are enhanced. She doesn't have music to listen to, or movies to watch, or food to cook, and people to smile at. She closes her eyes, shutting them so tight she sees the little stars and patterns. Her skinny hands with long delicate fingers are balled up by her side, clutching onto her pajama pants. She wants to cry, because how could she forget him? Even if it was for a few hours, she forgot him.

She can't keep ignoring her problems, with her warm smiles, and quiet giggles. She can't keep going through crazy grief that doesn't even make sense to her. She has to start facing her problems head-on. She'll have to tell someone, besides Oni about Sirius fucking Black. She'll have to tell Hei-Ran about the whole 'I gave another boy my number' thing. She'll have to actually deal with her mother's death, instead of acting like she's fine. She has to think about the fact something horrible could've happened late at night all those weeks ago if the Weasley twins and Harry hadn't shown up at that time.

Fuck- why is she thinking about this? Why is she going down this spiral of death and pain and potential trauma? She and Cedric aren't even dating! But, is that her just trying to feel less guilty? Is it just her mind's way of treating her like she's okay, like she almost didn't cheat on Cedric (is it cheating?). Wait, she's getting ahead of herself. She didn't even flirt with the boy, she didn't kiss him, or hook up with him, or even hold his hand! It's not cheating, why does she think it's cheating?

She can't deal with the thoughts, so she rushes out of bed ever so quietly. She grabs her CD player, Nevermind, and her writing notebook. The sound of Kurt Cobian playing his guitar and singing, Krist Novoselic on bass, and Dave Grohl on the drums drown out the rest of the world. She emerges into her fictional world, giving each character depth and a past. Occasionally, she turns to the back of the notebook and writes beats and lyrics. It's hard writing beats, so she does her best, using her knowledge of music theory.

She falls asleep, her head leaning lazily on her shoulder, and tears building in her eyes. she can't cry. Because, if she were to cry, her eyelids would be puffy when she wakes up, and doing makeup with puffy eyelids was so difficult. 

She wakes up earlier than she needs to, getting everything ready and cooking breakfast. Her neck hurts but she chooses to ignore it, she has other things to worry about. She taps her fingers on her kitchen counter, eating her pan dulce with her black coffee. Her father comes waddling into the room, cleaning his glasses. Sofia almost laughs at the sight, his shirt is tucked into his jeans, and he has a zip-up hoodie halfway on his arms.

"¿Que hiciste?"

"Chilaquiles," It's Sofia's favorite dish. Corn chips with salsa are cooked in a pan, once the chips are softened you add eggs, mix it every so often, and add some veggies along the way. She likes eating them with salsa, beans, and creme fresh. Her papa eats it with more chips and some avocado. It's an easy enough dish, and the smell is one of Sofia's favorites. "Está bien, ¿quieres llevar pan dulce a la escuela?" She nods, conchas are her favorite. With their delicious sweet yet not so sweet bread and some crumbly sugar mix that makes Sofia smile.

Her mother had brought them into her life, and she had taught Sofia how to make them. They're not difficult, it's just the ones from the local Mexican bakery are always so much better. She dips the concha into the coffee, when she takes it out, it's no longer lightly colored, but dark and soaking takes a bite and places the half-eaten bread on a paper towel. "Te amo," She tells him as she hugs him goodbye.

"Yo también te amo, amor. Mantente a salvo y envíame cartas si necesitas algo, Sofía. Incluso algunas conchas." He kisses her forehead. He slips a piece of paper into her bag, she'll read it when she gets to school. She waves goodbye, and she's gone in the blink of an eye, he'll never get used to magic.

Even if he grew up with it.


	23. twenty-one- punches and lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which she goes back

HEI-RAN is worried sick, she knows Sofia is safe, but after all the shit that went down yesterday, she's not quite ready for her best friend to come back to school.

"Fred, I swear to fucking Merlin, if you say any of that shit to her face," Stan looks him in the face, his wand up. "You're going to what? You're not my mother, I'm not scared of you!" Stan bodychecks him, ready to throw a fucking punch because of what he said. "Unless you fucking stop right now, I'll tell her! How about fucking that," Orla pushes Fred off of her close friend. Fred goes slightly pale, blood rushing from his face. His mother wouldn't have it.

"Fine," He spits, walking off. Oni laughs, "What was he going to do? Give her an ugly ass haircut like the fucking bowl cut he has now?" Oni walks up, he had missed the majority of the day due to trying to work out his new visions. "Calm down Stan," Stan's face is red with hatred, not anger. Anger is gross and ugly, and when he describes it to Sofia she can't make it into a beautiful poem. But, hatred, hatred is a perfect poem word, once you have hatred, hundreds and thousands of words will flow out of the pen perfectly made for her.

Stan blushes, but tries to shove it down, he can't still like Oni, he can't. He bites his lip and walks away, he needs to get fresh air. Sofia pops up, looking fresh and redeemed. Her cheeks have the perfect rosy tint that makes Sofia, Sofia. It's a tint the Roman Misfits have memorized, a red that's not quite pink, like her favorite color, but a soft red, with blotchy spots, and smile creases. A red that symbolizes love, hope, and a future. Because, as long as Sofia has her red rosy cheeks, everything will work out, somehow. Even if you have to pray to the Roman gods.

Her hair springs up, the colors that have been dyed the muggle way look so at home in her hair. It's a little mismatched, and while Sofia always loves the tiny perfect things in her life, the mismatched colors work. Her perfectly curled and taken care of hair bounces on her shoulders as she runs to her friends. Cedric watches as her skirt flows around her legs, and how her sweater falls loosely off her shoulders. She crashes into Hei-Ran's arms. She takes turns hugging her friends, reaching up to hug Oni, because she's 5'3" and he's 5'11". She moves onto Stan, the reach is easier, considering he's only 5 inches taller than her.

She hugs George, it's a little awkward, he's a whole foot taller than her, but she works it out. Sofia looks refreshed, with no under-eye circles, or twitching hands, she looks like spring. She looks like flowers can grow out of her hair at any moment, or warm sunlight will shine off of her, she practically is the sun, with her glowing smile, bright eyes. A breeze will always follow Sofia, cooling you off right at the perfect time in midday. All the good things surrounding spring surrounds Sofia. It hugs her, it is her. She embodies the perfect season, in one of the most perfect ways.

"Sofia, where have you been, loca?" Stan asks, it's a stupid joke, but watching Sofia cringe reminds him that she's not perfect, its such a desperate reminder he needs. "Oh, gross," Her thicker than normal accent makes it clear, she was home, in her cozy apartment, which just adds to her perfect life. Stan pauses- her fucking mother died! "Fuck," He whispers under his breath, she rarely talks about it, so he often forgets. Oh, how lucky he is that he can forget, that he won't live with the haunting memory of a dead loved one for the rest of his life.

"I missed you guys," She confesses, it was only a day, and really, she didn't, but she knows that there's something special about being missed.

"We missed you too, Sofe," Oni throws his arm around her, Hei-Ran on the other side doing the same thing. "I brought conchas," She slips one of the sleeves of her backpack off of her shoulder, and the backpack falls in front of her. She pulls out the pastries, and hands one to each of her friends. "What is this?" George asks, "Only the best dessert ever," Orla answers her boyfriend, taking a bite out of hers, letting a few crumbs fall to the ground. The group makes it outside to their designated spot, after laying down a blanket, they fall to the ground.

"It doesn't look like treacle tart," George answers, looking around hesitantly. "It's not a desert, more of a breakfast food, you typically eat it with some coffee, you can try it dry, and after," She pulls out a thermos filled with coffee. "You can try it with," She takes a bite out of her coffee-soaked concha. George takes a bite, the sweet crumble melts in his mouth, the bread is slightly warm, but it's a little sweet. It's okay, just a little dry. He grabs the coffee from the middle of the blanket and dips the breakfast bread into it. He lets the coffee drip into his hand a little bit, he takes a bite.

"Holy shit," It's a revelation, it's amazing, "This is amazing," He says through his mouth that is covered by his hand. "How could I have lived without this?" He comments, taking another bite. "Welcome to the beginning of your love for my world." Hei-Ran decides at that moment while Sofia is content, eating with her friends, and smiling that she won't tell her what Fred said. Or what happened when she was gone. She gives a nod to Oni, he understands it, they won't tell.

They go to class, and soon enough, it's night time. Sofia had yet to see Fred, which was odd, it's only till after dinner when she's talking a walk in the courtyard when she sees him. He walks directly in front of her, making her pause. "Hey, Fred?" It's definitely a question, the look on his face that Sofia can't dissect made it into one. "Hey, Sofia, you know what?" Sofia inwardly rolls her eyes, she's too tired to deal with an angry boy. "What?" Her tone is bored, but she's anxious for the drama.

"My dad would love you, you know? You're obsessed with the muggle world, and so is he. The only difference is, you run away to it, my dad finds interest in it." He says it like it's hurtful, it's not. Sofia knows it's true. "Okay...?" She says awkwardly, that wasn't so bad. "Good luck finding someone that will love a girl who always runs away from her problems!" His arms move around angrily, she spits on him, and walks away, her middle finger waving in the air. "Yeah, that's right, walk away, like you always do!"

She punches him. "Fucking dick," She rolls her eyes as she walks back into the Hufflepuff dorm as though nothing has happened. To her, nothing has.

So, Romeo isn't as cut and dry as he's let on. Being a half-blood from the Black family instead of being a pureblood is far harder than being a simple muggle who works for the National Intelligence Center or whatever. His half brothers are Regulus and Sirius Black, well he only has one brother now, no hard feelings, he and Regulus weren't close. When he first learned of the fact Sirius had been thrown in jail for murdering his best friends, Romeo was lost. From what he knew about his half brother, he was loyal and brave, and a fucking Gryffindor. The Sirius that murdered his best friends wasn't the same Sirius that took beatings for his younger brother, or the one that left the Black family because he was done with their bullshit.

When he learned of Sirius's escape, he knew that that was his Sirius. The same Sirius that he ran with during warm summer nights when they knew they missed curfew. The same Sirus that stuck up to his parents and told his parents yeah, he was dating a guy! The same Sirius he sent letters to, the one that told him of his crazy pranks with the best friends anyone could ask for. The same Sirius that he rebelled with during summers and fancy family meetings. The same Sirius that with a worrisome face told Romeo that he wouldn't get the dark mark.

Considering the fact Romeo was born because his mother had an affair with a black muggle, he was shipped off to Durmstrang. Everything was good, with his funny friends, and pretty girls of the school, he was content.

Durmstrang only gave him one month of break during the summer and 3 weeks off for the winter holidays so he rarely saw his so-called family. Not only that, but the school started accepting students at the age of 7, he was still a child, but he chooses to overlook that now. It got him out of that fucking house 4 years earlier than it would've if he had gone to Hogwarts. So it is what it is. His parents didn't want him home, so he missed the abuse and the potential love, but he had enough love and a little abuse at school.

He met Luisa in an exchange program, a Latin American school was staying with them so they could become socialized. Luisa was beautiful, with warm dark brown freckled skin that shined in the sun, dark eyes that you'd get stuck in but would never want to leave, and artificially straightened black hair that had random purple streaks. She blushed the most beautiful color, the same color Sofia did. Her knees were bruised, and her smile was lopsided, Romeo would never forget them. They didn't hit it off right away, Luisa hated him, his cockiness, shy grins, and intelligence that he just had to flaunt.

He had never been mean to her, or her friends, but for some reason, he just irked her. His jokes were actually funny, his smile was actually charming, his laugh was actually captivating, he was a good person, but that didn't click with Luisa. She secretly looked forward to seeing him in the halls, but publicly rolled her eyes when he winked at her. It took him 3 months to actually have a proper conversation with her. It was about a project, he flirted cockily but was actually useful. Luisa instantly reported to her friends, who suggested that maybe he wasn't as bad as she thought.

"That's the thing!" She confessed as she paced around the room, "He's not that bad! I don't know why my brain just decided to hate him!" She twirls her hair, her skirt flowing around comically. "Try to get to know him, please, I can't take 7 more months of this!" She had collapsed into her bed, ready for a midday nap. She did get to know him, she learned his quirks and his past, they went on a few dates, but the second the year ended they were parted. They didn't send letters or see each other until 6 months later.

They worked this time, they made it work. They went on dates, and studied together, and partied, they grew up together. They got married, they had a kid, they had a life together until they didn't. He learned that her family of muggle-borns and muggles were somehow very important, they were apart of this important prophecy that could ruin their wizarding world in Latin America. It was odd and while Romeo tried his best to grasp it, he never did. He was okay with the bounty on their heads, as long as he could hold her as they fall asleep at night.

Romeo has had a very hard time lying to his daughter for 15 almost 16 years. Luisa and Romeo had decided that it would be best if the light of their lives would be left in the dark, protected from the harshness of the prophecy. It was easier that way too, never having to show up on Platform 9 ¾ because muggles couldn't enter through the wall. Her friend's parents didn't know of the prophecy or the fact they weren't muggles, so that wasn't really an issue either.

In the end, it wasn't the prophecy that killed Luisa, it was him. It was him with the same hands that had once held hers, held the thing that killed her. It was his fault, he did it, he was the reason his daughter would live without a mother, he was the reason she would grow up with a hole in her heart. Oddly enough, she forgave him, she still loved him and smiled at him with the same smile, and eyes that were once Luisa's. Sofia has her eyes, her red rosy cheeks, her lopsided smile, her laugh, she had the most noticeable parts of Luisa. His daughter would always haunt him and it was all his fucking fault.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! i'll update soon!


	24. twenty-two- the perfect date and poems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which he reads her a poem, while on a perfect date.

“WHAT do I wear?” Cedric asks Oni, digging around in his bags, clothes strewn on the floor, his hair messed and fluffy. “You think I know? I’ve never been on a date Mr. Pretty Boy,” Oni’s words are muffled, his hands in his face, he pushes himself up, his legs dangling over the freezing floor. “Sofia’s favorite color is pink, right?” Cedric asks, pulling on dark acid-washed jeans that wouldn’t have looked good on anyone else, but since he’s Cedric fucking Diggory, they work on him. “Yeah, it is!” Oni responds, getting up to go to the restroom. Cedric takes off his shirt, looking around for a white graphic tee.

“WHAT SHOULD I WEAR OVER MY SHIRT?” Cedric knocks on the bathroom door. “Gihme uh thecont!” Oni calls out, brushing his teeth. “WHAT?” Oni opens the door clearly aggravated, “Give me a second,” He insists, the toothpaste foam still in his mouth. He finishes brushing his teeth and sits down on his bed, looking at Cedric expectantly. “What are you…” Cedric asks, walking anxiously, he hates being stared at, being in the spotlight, having to be perfect every single second. “Fashion show,” Oni explains, still waiting, “Oh!” Cedric grabs a flannel and puts it on.

“No, absolutely not. The yellows, clash with the red, and it just doesn’t fit,” Oni looks at him, waiting for a new shirt. Cedric tries on a red sweater, “Nope, it’s not the correct red,” Oni shakes his head. This process repeats nothing ever sticking as it should. A flash of colors pop out of Cedric’s suitcase, the colors are perfect, oh Merlin, how cliche. “What’s that?” He ponders, pointing at the bright colors, “Oh, it’s just one of those erm, muggle grandfather sweaters, didn’t think it would work,” Cedric shrugs it off. “Put it on, Diggory,” Oni insists. Cedric puts it on, it’s slightly itchy, just nothing a spell can’t fix.

“It’s perfect!” Oni exclaims the sweater is overall dark, the colors popping prettily, clashing with the pants slightly. “Do you have any like middle-colored pants?” Cedric looks confused, so Oni prepares to explain further. “Like, not light, but not dark either, and preferably not acid-washed, just one solid color,” Cedric thinks for a moment, before nodding, “Yeah, yeah I do.” He digs around on the floor, picking up blue jeans. “Perfect!” Oni says, “Now, just get a dark belt, and tuck the sweater into it,” Cedric does what he says.

“Now, onto shoes, pick some white Nikes, with a red, blue, or yellow accent, yeah. Then some jewelry, I have like bracelets I’ve never worn that will fit, and some necklaces,” Oni gets up and picks the accessories from his drawers. “Where are you taking her?”

“Oh, um we’re going on a picnic, I have the space picked out and everything,” Cedric nods while he tells Oni this, putting on his shoes, the red laces rubbing his coarse fingers. “Alright, so you might want to wear like a jean jacket or a block colored windbreaker. So a picnic, you have the food ready right?” Cedric looks at him like he’s stupid. “Yeah, the house-elves are getting it ready now,” Oni nods. “You might want to check on your food, they’re a little forgetful. When is your date?” Oni likes prying into his friend’s life, it’s fun, it’s exciting, it’s fresh. That’s why when you need to tell someone, you go to Oni, he can keep secrets, and never forget them when you bring them up later on.

“Erm, 20 minutes,” Cedric closes his eyes tightly, ready for the slander. “TWENTY MINUTES? Hurry up!” Oni is offended, Merlin, how could Cedric not be prepared for his date with one of the best girls ever! “I am, can you check on the food for me?” Cedric pleads, using his puppy eyes. “Fine!” Oni exclaims, but it’s really not that big of a deal, he just likes teasing his friends. He walks into the common room, Sofia nor any of their other friends are there. “Okay, so, what am I going to do today?” He talks to himself, walking into the corridor.

“Let’s see, I’ll probably copy Sofia’s homework, and work with Stan on it. Then, I’ll probably go into the forbidden forest to study about the animals, Hei-Ran will flirt with Hermione or at least talk to her, because Merlin, it’s getting pathetic.” He chuckles under his breath, tickling the pear and entering the kitchens. “Hello, Master Oni!” Indrial says, “I have packed up everything for Master Cedric, and Mistress’s Sofia’s date! What a lovely couple!” Oni smiles, “Yes, quite lovely!” He sits on a stool, talking with Indrial for a few minutes, watching her cook.

“I’ll be right back, I promise. I just have to give this to Master Cedric,” He flashes her a charming smile, grabbing the basket and heading towards the exit. He waves goodbye to everyone and walks back into the common room after tapping the wine barrels. Cedric is pacing dramatically, running his hands through his hair, and talking to a bored Alexandre. “You’re going to be fine! Just use your Cedric Diggory charm, and you’ll be fine promise!” Alex insists, urgency in his voice. “But I don’t have charm!” Cedric explodes, voice chalky.

“That’s bullshit and you know it, Diggory,” Sofia’s honey voice traps itself in the air, tracing its way back to Sofia dressed in black tights, dark purple skirt, white long-sleeved shirt, similar dark purple zip-up hoodie, with a jean jacket over it. Dark purple is painted in hair, her classic rosy cheeks imprinted on her face. “Oh erm, you like nice!” Cedric mutters, Alexandre laughing lightly, Oni laughing with him. “You do too,” She smiles goodbye to Hei-Ran and makes her way down to the common room. “Ready?” Cedric smiles at her, tilting his head to the side lightly. “Oh definitely,” She tells him, walking out of the common room.

“Alright, Digory, are you ready to tell me where we’re going?”

“Not a chance,” The two laugh, sweetly, lovingly, heartwarmingly. Oni’s ears burn from Indrial’s previous words ‘What a lovely couple’, and before he knows it, his eyes go gray with a vision and before he knows it he’s watching Cedric. He sees Cedric dead, dirty, and scared on the Quidditch Pitch grass, before he can digest it, he sees Sofia’s lifeless body, still clutching her wand on a dirty floor filled with broken glass. He’s back in the real world in a split second, hyperventilating because he had just seen Sofia’s dead fucking body. “Hey,” Hei-Ran starts softly, “Are you okay-” He leaves for the kitchens, Oni never breaks a promise.

Cedric slips his hand into Sofia’s, “How was going home?” Her face brightens, “It was amazing, I mean, it was fun, and I hung out with a friend, that I hadn’t seen in ages, you know?” He nods understandingly, but in reality, he doesn’t. His school friends are the only people he knows, he lives in a wizarding town, filled with people from school, from life, from his father’s job, he’s known everyone in his life from Hogwarts, he’ll see them again every year. “I know you don’t but it’s fine,” Cedric gasps.

“I do too!”

“Really?” She teases, eyes fluttering dramatically. “Yeah, erm, you know the shopkeeper back home, and we’re kind of friends, I always say hi to him when I go back home,” He lies through his white teeth. “Cedric, I’ve never visited your village, I have absolutely no idea who you’re talking about,” Sofia and Cedric both look equally puzzled. “You’ve never been to Ottery?” Ottery is a nickname for Ottery St. Catchpole. “No,” Cedric stops walking and begins to talk with his hands. “You don’t visit the Weasleys?”

“No, erm, Orla is dating George, but that doesn’t give me a way into their family.” Cedric keeps walking but still looks confused, “No, everyone’s friends with the Weasleys, everyone’s been to the Burrow, at least once,” Sofia just shrugs him off. “I think you’re underestimating the fact there are people who hate the Weasley’s here, Slytherins who are pureblood supremacists, and people who aren’t close with the Weasley’s.”

“Well, touche, really,” Cedric smiles at her again, putting his hand in hers. “How’s the band?” He asks while they step out into the cold, he’s glad he decided to wear a jacket over his sweater. “We haven’t practiced since a few weeks ago, but we do have practice tonight, I’m excited. We have some new songs we’re planning out, we have one called ‘Red-Eyed Laughs’ but the chorus, God, it’s so difficult. We have the bridge, and melody figured out, but the chorus is too difficult.” She explains, “Uh-huh, totally,” Cedric acts as though he understands.

He doesn’t know jackshit, but he’s willing to listen as Sofia rants about something she’s passionate about, eyes lighting up, hands moving through her curls sporadically, cheeks blushing every time she laughs. “So, we have a concert, soon,” She nods at him, but he stops walking in the middle of a field. The grass is a perfect green, it could paint the world, and no one would mind. “Oh, a picnic?” He nods, “Not just a picnic, a perfect picnic,” He smiles at her, pushing down the blanket. “Did Alex have to help you with this one?”

“Well, not particularly,” He laughs as she shakes her head lightly, curls going everywhere. “So what does the perfect picnic entail?” She encourages him, it’s only fair he gets to rant when she did for a long time. “A picnic, some stories, teaching you how to ride a broom, and hmm, maybe some art,” Sofia panics slightly. “Riding a fucking broom? Cedric, I’m in a skirt,” Cedric nods his head, grasping the situation. “Yeah, well I probably should’ve planned that out, but erm, we’ll work around it!”

Cedric planned out everything, truly, what food they were going to eat, drinks, snacks, dessert, what flowers there were going to be. It was nice, they laughed and talked while they ate, sometimes they just sat in silence, listening to the prepicked music. When they were finished Cedric fished a piece of paper out of his back pocket. “Now, before the storytelling starts, I wrote you a poem.” She laughs airly, “You did what?” Cedric gives her a pointed look. “I’m no poet, I can’t rhyme for shit, and Alex did not help me whatsoever, but, I promise, it’s going to be lovely.”

“Alright, well, I’m waiting, Mr. Poet,” She watches him intently, as he clears his throat. “Sofia, with your pretty brown eyes that shine in the sun that you carry with you in your picture-perfect smiles. Sofia, with your quiet laughs, that makes me want to tell the whole school to just shut up, so I can hear it clearly. Sofia, with your voice that feels straight out of a dream, I wish I could record it so I can play it forever, and ever. Sofia, with your perfect personality, love for the Roman gods, your dedication to your friends, and passion for music. Sofia, with your everything.” His voice is soft when he reads the poem to her, it leaks out of him, creativity, truth, and a hint of butterflies flow in rivers.

“I-,” She kisses him, smiles, beautiful eyes and all. “Thank you,” She says, her face inches from his. Sofia’s eyes flutter lightly, as he goes in to kiss her again. It’s sweet, simple, filled with puppy love that they’ll claim isn’t puppy love, when in reality, they’re 16 and 15, they know nothing about love. The gods look down at them and smile lightly, they deserve this. Sofia breaks apart first, cupping his defined jawline, tracing figures into his skin. “Teach me how to ride a broom.” She says it with force, it doesn’t seem so bad now, it’s still horrifying, but slightly less.

“Alright, yeah,” His classic grin still brings butterflies to Sofia’s stomach, they intensify when he stands up, putting his hand out for her. She grabs it, following him as he grabs two brooms from behind a tree. “Alright so,” He shows her how to mount a broom, “You just mount the broom like this, and to go into the air, you push, and bam, suddenly you’re in the air!” He demonstrates for her, she follows hesitantly, not daring to push up off the floor. “You can do it,” Sofia looks around hesitantly, pushing off slightly, her feet dangling like the tendons have been cut.

“Yeah, I’m really not feeling this, not at all,” She closes her eyes dramatically, trying to go back down. “You never told had to go back to the ground!” She panics, Cedric tries his best to assist her but doesn’t want to. She floats around in the air momentarily, attempting to get her groove. It takes a few minutes for her to get it, she flys around in chunky patterns, unable to fully get control of the broom. The sky is painted a beautiful blue, it compliments the perfect ‘paint the world’ green that she’ll always remember.

It clicks in her head, she’s soaring slowly, stumbling slightly, but still flying. Cedric yells, “YUP! YOU DID IT!” He follows her, admiring her face as she looks back at him. She stops flying at a high point, “I can’t believe I haven’t done this before!”

“Well, how could you have, you probably never have time in your schedule, driving me crazy and all,” Sofia throws her head back in loud, booming, perfect, laughter. Cedric wished he owned a camera, he wished he could capture this moment, her laughing carelessly on a broom. He had made her laugh and that everything he could ever hope for. “Now, how do I get down?”

Going back down to the earth isn’t smooth, it’s broken and awkward. The wind twists and turns, pushing Sofia all around, damaging her hair, and her ego. She collapses on the ground, panting heavily, Cedric collapses next to her, looking at her as though she’s the sun, she probably is, he thinks. She looks back at him, the next thing he knows is the taste of her strawberry lip balm that will always be his favorite flavor.

**Author's Note:**

> my wp is downinhollywood!


End file.
